


Quarantined With You

by lilwasabi



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Angst, Choniendgame, Drama, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/F, Flashbacks, Fluff, Secrets, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-23
Updated: 2020-08-22
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:41:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 59,521
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24885502
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lilwasabi/pseuds/lilwasabi
Summary: What was supposed to be a thrilling and fun spring break for Cheryl Blossom quickly turned upside down when the coronavirus pandemic set in. Being quarantined in Los Angeles with the other Riverdale kids was not the kind of break she had planned on. Cheryl didn’t think things could get any worse but the world was a cruel mistress as she’s forced to quarantine with her ex-girlfriend, Toni Topaz. The girl who used to be her entire world and had plagued her mind ever since their breakup. A breakup that was entirely Cheryl’s fault. Will being stuck together for an indefinite amount of time bring them back together or push them farther apart once Toni learns the truth?aka Cheryl and Toni are stuck in quarantine together.
Relationships: Archie Andrews/Veronica Lodge, Betty Cooper/Jughead Jones, Cheryl Blossom/Toni Topaz, Fangs Fogarty/Kevin Keller, Josie McCoy/Sweet Pea
Comments: 174
Kudos: 428





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! Thought this storyline would be cute. I started writing this back in March when we were really under lockdown. That said, I am in no way a healthcare professional, but don't be stupid when you go outside. Stay home when you can and just read fanfiction instead, lol. Hope you guys enjoy this ride!
> 
> P.S. I have not written in over 3 years and am soooo rusty. Bear with me.
> 
> P.P.S. I did not spell check or review this.

It was the last spring break the kids of Riverdale were about to spend together before everyone left for college. Sure they had the entire summer, but with everything that had happened over the past few years, they were all determined to continue making their senior year the best yet. Veronica had graciously offered up her family’s mansion in Los Angeles for their week-long vacation and everyone happily agreed. Archie, Veronica, Cheryl, Kevin, and Josie decided to take the same flight out as Jughead and Betty were planning on staying in an Airbnb with some other friends. Everyone agreed that they would meet up at Veronica’s the first night to really get the party going before everyone went to do their own things in the city.

The first group’s flight from their small town to the big city was quite uneventful, but soon enough they were filled with excitement as soon as the warm sunlight of the City of Angels hit their skin. It was a much welcomed change from the cold and dark weather currently surrounding their hometown.

The Lodge’s driver picked up the group from LAX in no time and piled all their luggage into the back of their Cadillac Escalade. The driver wasn’t anything like Smithers back home, but he came in at second best. During the ride to Veronica’s, the crew happily chatted away and started to plan all the activities they wanted to do in the city. Cheryl, Kevin, Josie were discussing all the shopping they wanted to do on the Promenade while Archie and Veronica kept giving each other heart eyes. Kevin and Josie seemed oblivious to this as they continued to chat about their plans, but Cheryl knew that as soon as they got to the mansion, Archie and Veronica would be sneaking off.

An hour later the car rolled through the massive black gates to the mansion. Damn, LA traffic was always a pain to drive in. The car drove around the roundabout and stopped at the front of the house. The group quickly exited the car, happy to have the chance to stretch their legs. Much of their day had consisted of traveling as Riverdale was on the opposite side of the country.

The white exterior of the mansion was immaculate. Two tall pillars stood on the large porch, supporting the small overhang of the roof. Multiple French-styled windows covered the front and surrounded the large wooden black door that contrasted nicely to the white exterior. A large light fixture hung from the porch above the door – a small flame giving light to the semi-dark porch that was covered by the sun.

“It’s not Thistlehouse, but it’ll have to do,” Cheryl exasperated.

Veronica rolled her eyes, “Glad that it meets your standards.”

Everyone grabbed their luggage and made their way through the large doorway to the mansion. The inside was just as pristine as the outside. There was hardwood flooring throughout the entire house that ran up against clean white walls. The house was pretty modern, but still resembled the same interior as the Pembrooke. Veronica’s parents were sticklers for keeping the same designs across all their properties.

Kevin whistled in awe, “Damn, V! This place is so nice!”

“I think we can fit our entire house just in your kitchen,” Josie said, taking in the vast clean kitchen that had all stainless steel appliances.

“I haven’t been here since I was a little girl,” Veronica replied. “I’m not even sure why Daddy still has this property. We don’t come here anymore. He probably just uses it for his shady business dealings.”

“Well, no matter the reason,” Kevin said, “It sure beats being stuck at our house, no doubt playing board games with our parents.” He gave Josie a knowing look.

“I never want to play Life with them again,” Josie added.

“We’re going to have so much fun guys! Spring break 2020!” Veronica said excitedly. “Now, for rooms. There are 7 bedrooms in the house. Two downstairs that share a bathroom and the other five upstairs. Two of the bedrooms upstairs also share a bathroom. All the others have their own. Archiekins and I will take the master, but everyone else, feel free to choose.” And with that she and Archie were off to the master suite before anyone could stop them.

Kevin and Josie decided to take the two bedrooms downstairs that were located down a hallway off the kitchen, which left Cheryl to dragging her overstuffed red suitcase up the stairs to find a room. If she broke a nail, there would be hell to pay. Once at the top of the stairs, she took a moment to catch her breath before taking an immediate right down one of the hallways. Archie and Veronica had disappeared down the hallway to her left and Cheryl wanted to avoid them and their antics at all costs. She approached two closed doors and decided on taking the very last one. The farther away from the two lovebirds, the better.

Cheryl wasn’t opposed to Archie and Veronica’s relationship, but she hated being around such a loving couple. Sure she had been in a relationship like that and understood the overwhelming feeling of being completely and hopelessly in love. But she didn’t need them throwing it in her face every chance they got. It was hard enough for her to try and forget the pink-haired girl that once flooded her mind 24/7 – to forget the reasons why she did what she did… The reason why she had to end everything. To end the thing that had been the best part of her life.

Shaking those thoughts from her head, she explored the room she had chosen for the week. It was quite modest with a queen sized bed centered in the middle of the room facing the door and a white fabric bench at the end of it. There were two wooden night stands on either side of the bed, one with a small lamp and the other with a few books. On the side of the wall by the door stood a vintage white dresser, next to it, another door she assumed was the closet. On the opposite side was a windowsill seat overlooking the backyard of the house. It was adorned with a few pillows and sheer white curtains. Cheryl opened the door that was next to the windows and saw that it was the bathroom – a Jack and Jill style. The en-suite was fairly large and she was thankful that she was going to have the place to herself.

After she finished looking around the room, Cheryl lifted her suitcase up on the bench at the end of the bed to start unpacking. She didn’t want her outfits for the week getting wrinkled. In true Cheryl fashion, she had packed all her favorites: short red crop top; long-sleeved black blouse; white jeans; black leather skirt; a very form fitting short red dress; her spider brooch; multiple pairs of Louboutins and many other Cheryl Bombshell staples. Towards the bottom of her suitcase she found her most prized possession – her red leather Serpent jacket. She didn’t wear the piece of clothing as often as she would like, but she couldn’t bear to part with it. There were too many happy memories attached to the jacket that she wasn’t willing to let go of. Memories of a certain pink-haired Serpent that she wanted to hold onto forever, despite everything that she had done.

As she continued to relish in the memories of her once happy life, she heard the doorbell ring throughout the house and then a sudden rush of hurried footsteps. Dropping her leather jacket back in her suitcase she walked to the hallway, catching a quick glimpse of a certain raven-haired girl running down the stairs. Cheryl was beyond confused as Archie emerged from the opposite hallway trying to keep up with Veronica.

“What the hell is going on?” Cheryl asked.

“Betty just called. Their Airbnb was cancelled,” Archie responded. “Ronnie told them they could all stay with us.” And with that, Archie disappeared down the stairs.

Cheryl rolled her eyes. Her cousin she could handle, but she didn’t want to spend her entire spring break with Jughead and the other ragamuffins he spent time with. She wasn’t even sure which ragamuffins Betty and Jughead had planned their California trip with and she wasn’t excited to find out.

Descending down the stairs, she saw Veronica and Archie talking with Betty and Jughead. Among them she noticed Sweet Pea and Fangs conversing with Kevin and Josie who had also heard the commotion. All of a sudden, slight panic rose within her. Cheryl knew that if Sweet Pea and Fangs were here that meant…

_Oh shit._

“Thanks for leaving me with the luggage assholes.”

In walked Toni Topaz carrying a few duffel bags, brunette-pink hair tied up in a short ponytail. She was wearing a pair of black distressed jeans, black crop top, combat boots and a red flannel wrapped around her waist. Her badass aesthetic adorned with her worn out Serpent jacket.

Cheryl took in the sight before her and was met with a multitude of emotions. Before she knew it, her mouth was moving faster than her brain could keep up with.

“Um, does anyone have a chainsaw? Because what the –“

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I loved the last quote and just wanted to add it to the story. May post the next chapter in a week or so. I'm currently writing Chapter 12, so the story is pretty far along. Just wanted to make sure that I'd actually finish this one since I left my other one in the dust.
> 
> Let me know what you think!


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we’re back! Flashback chapter! Enjoy!
> 
> Guys!!!! I had no idea I’d get such a positive response from this story, but since I did, I'm giving you the second chapter. Just a few things I wanted to let you guys know:
> 
> 1\. There is angst in this story. Sorry, I like writing it and then seeing how a couple can persevere through anything.  
> 2\. The reason for Choni’s breakup is going to be revealed later in the story, so you’re just going to have be patient with me lol. Also, there was no cheating. I absolutely hate that shit  
> 3\. Update schedule will possibly be twice a week. I don’t have set days, but I have 13 chapters written and others planned all the way to 19, so I’m not abandoning this story (unlike my other one, yes I am very ashamed of that)

_March 2019_

“TT, you promised me!” Cheryl said with a slight pout. She was looking at her pink-haired girlfriend through her vanity mirror who was seated on their bed.

“Baaabbeee,” Toni whined, not looking at her girlfriend. She knew Cheryl was giving her the puppy dog eyes and knew she’d give into what Cheryl wanted because she was just too damn cute.

“We talked about this! You said we could go on a ski trip to Mont Blanc for spring break.” Cheryl shifted in her chair, now looking directly at Toni instead of through her mirror.

Toni continued looking around their bedroom, trying not to meet her girlfriend’s eyes. “Well, I didn’t think you were actually serious,” she said sarcastically. “You know how I feel about the cold”

“TT,” Cheryl paused waiting for Toni to meet her gaze. “Look at me.”

The caramel-skinned girl still didn’t look in Cheryl’s direction. She was going to win this debate and not give in. Yep, definitely not going to cave.

“TT,” Cheryl said a little more seductively. She was now standing in front of Toni. Her hands slowly rubbing up and down Toni’s jean covered legs.

 _Don’t do it. Don’t do it._ Toni thought.

“Baby,” Cheryl continued innocently. “Please look at me.”

_Don’t you dare do it Topaz._

Cheryl was now straddling her girlfriend. Her hands wrapping around the shorter girl to play with the baby hairs on her neck. Toni shivered as she placed her hands behind her to support them.

_Fuck!_

Toni looked up to meet Cheryl’s eyes and she was a goner.

“So Mont Blanc?” Cheryl questioned. She leaned down to scatter kisses across Toni’s neck, before connecting their lips in a soft kiss.

Toni closed her eyes, savoring the taste of Cheryl’s plump lips. This girl was going to be the death of her.

“Anything you want babe,” Toni mumbled against her lips, slightly intoxicated by the goddess that was Cheryl Blossom.

“Magnifique!” Cheryl said excitedly as she jumped off of Toni’s lap and walked away.

Toni sat there in a state of shock at how quickly the mood had changed. “Curse you, Bombshell, and your seductive ways. Now you’ve got me all hot and bothered.” It was Toni’s turn to pout.

Cheryl chuckled, “They’ll be plenty of time for that in Mont Blanc, my love. It’s time to pack now.” She continued to laugh at her girlfriend’s flustered state as she disappeared into their closet.

Toni huffed out of annoyance and fell backwards on the bed. Yep, this girl was going to kill her.

* * *

Toni groaned as she crashed onto the bed in their chalet in Mont Blanc. Cheryl had insisted that she learn how to ski as she had never experienced it before. To say Toni was anxious about it was an understatement. Her entire body ached from the whole pizza, french-fry technique the ski instructor kept droning on about during the ski lesson. Not to mention the numerous amount of times she fell face first into the snow. She was convinced her toes had caught frostbite from the numbing sensation she felt all day. Toni Topaz and cold weather did not go hand-in-hand. She’s not too sure how she’s survived the winters in Riverdale. She despised it and would rather be basking in the sun on a beach drinking some fruity drink with a little umbrella in it.

But she loved Cheryl and would follow that girl anywhere she went. Even if it meant spending a week playing around in piles of snow. By the end of the day, she had accomplished making it down the not so small bunny hill, only taking out a few little kids along the way. Cheryl had stayed with her for most of the day, skiing backwards as she tried to give her some advice. Leave it to her red-headed girlfriend to know how to ski like an Olympian.

Now here she was, lying motionless on the king-sized bed, chilled to the bone. Skiing had kicked her ass worse than the beating she received from the Ghoulies during their gang war last fall. In all honesty, she’d rather take on another Ghoulie than attempt skiing ever again. As she laid there, eyes closed, she heard Cheryl walk in.

“Aw, mon amour,” Cheryl cooed. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I just got whacked by a wrecking ball, over, and over again.”

Cheryl sat on the edge of the bed as she ran her fingers through pink locks. “I brought you some ibuprofen to help with the soreness. Also, I thought a hot bath would do you good.”

Toni groaned again, “I can’t mooovveeeee. Everything hurts and I don’t think I’ll ever be able to walk again.”

Cheryl laughed, “Ok, drama queen. Take some ibuprofen and I will draw you a nice hot bath to help relax your muscles. You’ll feel better in no time, TT.”

As Cheryl stood up, Toni reached out and tugged on her hand. “Will you join me?” She gave her girlfriend her best puppy dog eyes.

Cheryl couldn’t stop from laughing again. The puppy dog eyes seemed to work both ways with these two. “Of course, my love. But you’ll have to escape the confines of this bed.”

Toni grinned, “For you, anything.”

Cheryl leaned down to place a soft kiss on Toni’s head before heading to the bathroom to get their bath started.

Toni laid there for a few more minutes enjoying the fact that she was actually here with Cheryl. She never would have thought she’d be in a loving relationship with such an amazing person. To think that almost a year ago, she and the redhead were at each other’s throats when the Serpents had transferred to Riverdale; the memory always made her laugh. They had come into each other’s lives at their lowest points and had helped rebuild one another. Sure they had their ups and downs, but they were Cheryl and Toni! Everyone knew the bond they shared was stronger than any other couple in Riverdale. Not to mention they had quickly been coined Riverdale’s resident “It” couple.

With everything the couple had been through their first year of being together, Toni was sure they could handle anything that came their way. She meant it when she said she would do anything for her girlfriend. Cheryl Blossom was her future and she was not going to give that up anytime soon.

With one last groan, she sat up and grabbed the bottle of ibuprofen Cheryl had left for her. She downed the medicine with the glass of water sitting on the nightstand before using her remaining energy to join her girlfriend in the bathroom.

* * *

The girls’ spring break went by quicker than either girl wanted it to. Cheryl couldn’t remember any other spring break that was as memorable. Maybe a trip with JJ when they were younger, but that memory was so long ago; clouded by not so pleasant ones her parents had scarred her with. But Toni was with her now to make new memories. Memories she was going to cherish and replace with the ones that haunted her. The amount of love that the pink-haired girl showed Cheryl always amazed her and she didn’t know how she got so lucky. The world was finely working in her favor and making up for all the darkness that had surrounded her for years.

Cheryl had convinced Toni to go up skiing one more time and her girlfriend actually enjoyed her second day. Granted, she stayed on greens all day, but she only had one major fall. Cheryl had praised her all day for making it off the bunny hill to which Toni just rolled her eyes. As soon as Toni needed a break, Cheryl had left her at the lodge to ski down the black diamond runs, which scared Toni to death. But she knew that Cheryl was an excellent skier and had been skiing most of her life. They didn’t spend a lot of time on the mountain that day, instead choosing to cuddle up together in front of a fire in their chalet.

The next day, Cheryl planned a date night for them that included a nice dinner at one of the resort’s high-end restaurants, followed by a late night adventure of snow tubing. Despite leaving with cold faces and wet butts, Toni didn’t complain, as they ended their date in a hot shower and tangled in the bed sheets.

Their last day had Toni up at 8AM and she was not happy about the early morning wake up call, especially after the sex filled night she and Cheryl had. But Cheryl had promised that today would be Toni’s favorite of their trip. Reluctantly, Toni got up and quickly dressed in her winter gear that Cheryl had gotten for her; everything mostly in the color purple. The two grabbed a quick breakfast from a coffee shop in town before Cheryl was driving them to the opposite side of the mountain where they had skied. As Cheryl pulled up to their destination, Toni’s eyes widened at the sight in front of her and she was out of the car before Cheryl had time to park.

“Oh my god, Cher!” Toni exclaimed as her girlfriend quickly made her way to her. “Are we actually getting on one of these!?”

“Antoinette Topaz! Don’t jump out of the car like that,” Cheryl scolded. “You should have at least waited until I parked.”

Toni quickly pecked Cheryl’s lips. “I’m sorry, baby. I’m just super excited.”

Cheryl chuckled and rolled her eyes at her girlfriend’s enthusiasm.

In front of them were a few snowmobiles lined up in the snow. Cheryl knew her girlfriend was going to freak out with how much she was in love with her bike back in Riverdale. She just didn’t expect Toni to stop, drop, and roll out of the car. Her girlfriend was definitely a character.

The pair met up with their instructor and tour guide who showed them how to drive the snowmobile and how long their trip up and down the mountain would take. Toni was acting like a little kid in a candy store. Cheryl found it utterly adorable, even though her girlfriend would argue that she was in no way adorable. She was a badass. A badass in a gang. But Cheryl knew how much of a teddy bear her girlfriend really was.

Despite Toni offering Cheryl a chance to drive, Cheryl declined. Sure she had driven Toni’s bike before, but she wasn’t too thrilled about it. She always preferred Toni to drive so she could wrap her arms around the smaller girl’s waist and enjoy their surroundings. Besides, today was about Toni as Cheryl felt a tad bit guilty about having their spring break in such a cold environment. She knew Toni wasn’t a fan of the cold.

Once they made it to the top of the mountain, they turned off the snowmobiles and took a moment to take in the views from the greenery of the tall evergreen trees to the small resort down below. The air was crisp and cool. A peaceful silence surrounded them with the exception of the rustling of the trees. As Cheryl was admiring the nature around them she heard a click and then another. She turned around towards the sound and saw her girlfriend with her camera out as she snapped another picture of her.

“TT, you’re supposed to be admiring the views,” Cheryl chided.

“I am,” Toni smirked as she took another picture of the redhead.

Cheryl rolled her eyes. “The mountain views Cha-Cha. You have enough pictures of me.”

“I could never have enough pictures of you. I mean have you seen yourself!”

“Smooth-talker,” Cheryl said as she walked over to Toni and gave her a quick kiss before snatching the camera away.

“Baabbbeee,” Toni whined. “Give it back.”

“No,” Cheryl said as she held the camera behind her back. “If you’re going to take pictures, why can’t you use your phone. You know I hate not being able to see the pictures you take on this thing.”

“Cher, you can never take a bad picture. And pictures on film are so much better than any picture captured on my phone. It doesn’t do your beauty justice.”

Toni tried to grab her camera back from Cheryl but to no avail. Cheryl ended up holding the camera above her head.

“Ok, now that’s just plain rude,” Toni scoffed, hating the height difference her girlfriend had on her.

“But you take forever to develop them, my love,” Cheryl said, slightly enjoying Toni’s struggle to claim her precious camera back, “I want to see them now so I can veto the bad ones.”

“Baby!” Toni exclaimed, still trying to grab her camera. “Just a few more shots and then I’m done. And I’ll develop them as soon as we get back home. You can burn any copies you find _unworthy_. But I mean that’ll be hard, seeing as you’re a literally goddess.”

“Such a flirt,” Cheryl chuckled as she leaned down to press her lips to Toni’s, finally giving the girl her beloved camera back.

“You’re lucky I love you so much,” Toni joked.

“You get to take one more photo. Then I have other plans for us when we get back to the chalet,” Cheryl whispered the last part seductively.

Toni raised her eyebrows, “Deal!” She raised her camera to take one more photo of the love of her life, but Cheryl had a different idea.

She pulled Toni towards her and instructed her to turn the camera around so they could take a selfie.

"Cher, it doesn’t work that way with this camera.”

“Let’s just try it,” Cheryl said with a slight pout. “You don’t know how it’ll turn out until you actually develop the film.”

"Fine,” Toni said as she fiddled with the settings on the camera and turned it to face them.

The two were smiling into the camera lens. But right before Toni pressed down on the button, Cheryl turned and kissed her cheek, surprising Toni and making her slightly scrunch up her face.

“Ok, well that is definitely going to get burned,” Toni said as she dropped the camera to her side.

“I think it’ll turn out perfect,” Cheryl said as she kissed Toni’s cheek again. “Just like you.”

“Now who’s being the flirt,” Toni chuckled as she wrapped her arms around Cheryl’s waist and leaned her forehead against hers, breathing in the redhead’s staple perfume that smelled like cherries. “I love being here with you. Going on these adventures and creating memories.”

Cheryl closed her eyes as they stood there wrapped up in one another, feeling nothing but love. “I never want this to end. You’re my future, Toni. I love you.”

“I love you too, babe,” Toni replied as she connected their lips in a sweet kiss.

Nothing mattered to them in that moment except each other. If only the two lovebirds knew what would happen in the next few months.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope that wasn’t too much of a cliff hanger lol. Damn, I miss the mountains. I only got up to snowboard 4 times this year before they closed :( Skiing is definitely easier to pick up if you’ve never done any winter sports before, but snowboarding is a lot more fun (in my opinion). Haven’t tried snowmobiling, but I’ll get to it eventually.
> 
> Appreciate your feedback/comments!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quarantining is underway! Back to the present we go!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What up my dudes! Here's another chapter. Honestly don’t like the ending part of this, but I’m too lazy to rewrite it. If you haven't noticed, I'm going to be switching from the present to the past each chapter. Enjoy!

_“As COVID-19 has reached the United States, we’re asking that everyone take precautions to social distance themselves from one another and do their best to stay at home. Please be cautious when out in public and if you feel unwell, seek medical attention immediately.”_

The teens silently sat in the vast living room watching one news report after the other informing them of the seriousness of the coronavirus. Just minutes earlier, they had all received an email informing them that Riverdale High had closed until further notice – likely not opening up for the remainder of their senior year. Sure they were all aware of the virus and its impact on the world, but now that multiple cases were popping up around their country, the reality had set in.

They weren’t expecting the virus to spread so quickly throughout the US, which is why they had agreed to take the trip to LA. But now, they weren’t sure what to do. The only option for them now was to quarantine themselves in Veronica’s mansion and hope for the best. That’s all they could do at this moment.

“Well,” Archie began standing up from the sectional sofa, “It looks like we’re stuck with each other.”

“Great,” Cheryl mumbled as she rolled her eyes from the chair she was sitting in.

No one knew what to say. This was uncharted territory for everyone. They’d never seen the country shut down like this before. And to say it was fucking scary was a complete and utter understatement.

“Come on guys,” Veronica said as she stood up next to Archie, “Don’t look so glum. Just think of this as an extended spring break. Albeit a very extended long break.”

There was some grumbling from everyone and a few nods.

“We’ll make the most of it,” Veronica continued, “As scary as this situation is, we at least have each other. We can make it work.” She gave a smile to everyone, trying to convey a sense of hope.

“There’s nothing we can do right now,” Betty added, “So, I’m with V on this. Let’s just try and make the best of this.”

Jughead smiled at his girlfriend, “For you Betty Cooper, anything.”

“ _Whipped,”_ Sweet Pea silently coughed.

Cheryl rolled her eyes for what felt like the hundredth time ever since the hobo and his gaggle of baboons had come crashing into the house. As she surveyed the room, her gaze couldn’t help but be drawn to pink hair. Unbeknownst to Cheryl, Toni had been looking at her ever since she walked through the door. As their eyes met, Toni quickly looked away, not wanting the red-head to know she had been staring at her. Once again, Cheryl rolled her eyes.

“Ok,” Veronica said clasping her hands together, “Now that we have extra guests, I’ll give you guys a quick tour and you guys can get settled in. After that, we should make a run to Costco to get some food and whatnot because we definitely will need the sustenance with the amount of people who are here.”

“Sounds good to me, V,” Betty said.

“Oh, I forgot,” Veronica said as she looked to Jughead and Betty. “There’s only three extra bedrooms in the house, but we do have the pool house. Would you guys want to stay there? Unless, Fangs and Sweet Pea, you want to share a bed?”

Sweet Pea laughed. “Fangs, wishes he could sleep with me.”

Fangs smirked, “You couldn’t even handle me.”

Jughead laughed, “Yeah, Ronnie. That works for us.”

“Great,” she said happily. “Just please keep the sex to a minimum.”

Betty blushed slightly as Jughead simply scoffed.

“Well, as thrilling as this is chums,” Cheryl said as she stands up and looks around the room, “I will be taking my leave. Toodles!” And with that, she quickly walked out of the room not giving anyone a second glance, especially a certain girl who was now invading every corner of Cheryl’s mind.

Cheryl made her way back up the stairs to her room, trying to calm her beating heart. It would take the world basically ending for her to be thrown back together with Toni. And after all of these months. Cheryl made it to her room, slamming the door a little harder than she meant to and immediately laid down on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

_Why? Why the fuck was this happening to her?_

It was hard enough for Cheryl to see Toni at school. Always stealing glances at the girl who used to be her everything. The girl she would have done anything for. But as cruel as the world was right now, it had been much crueler to Cheryl. Was she destined to always be unhappy? After what she had done, probably. But it came from a place of love, didn’t it?

Cheryl rubbed her eyes, trying to force the tears back before they could fall down her face. A week with the girl she could handle. But having to be quarantined with her for who knows how long was something she was most definitely not prepared for. She wasn’t going to let Toni Topaz get under her skin though. She was Riverdale’s Queen Bee after all.

_Just be the unemotional, cold, hard bitch everyone knows you to be._

And that’s what Cheryl decided to do in that moment. She wasn’t going to let her emotions or old memories get to her. She had made a choice last summer and no matter how much it hurt her, she was going to stand by her decision. It’s what was best and she wouldn’t have done anything differently…or would she have?

As Cheryl laid there for another few minutes she heard footsteps coming up the stairs. No doubt the heathens, looking to settle into their bedrooms. Then it hit her that there were only three bedrooms open on the top floor and her bedroom shared a bathroom with another. Before she could dwell on the matter further, she heard shuffling in the adjoined bathroom. She sat up and looked at the closed bathroom door and hoped to God that the person on the other side wasn’t who she thought it was.

_Please be Cousin Betty!_

Ok, that was a dumb, Cheryl. She’s with the beanie-wearing hobo in the pool house. Before she knew it, she was up out of the bed and yanking the bathroom door open, just to be met with the one person who she really didn’t want to see. Or did she?

“Geezus, Cheryl!” Toni exclaimed as she clutched her chest taking a deep breath.

Cheryl couldn’t help it. Her eyes involuntarily scanned the smaller girl, noticing she wasn’t wearing her serpent jacket. She stared, perhaps longer than she should have, at Toni’s well defined stomach as her crop-top shifted slightly higher. She quickly looked away as Toni shuffled around the bathroom.

“What are you doing?” Cheryl said incredulously as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"What does it look like,” Toni replied calmly as she continued to unpack her things.

Cheryl rolled her eyes. “You couldn’t have taken one of the other rooms?”

Toni released a sigh and closed her eyes before she turned directly to Cheryl. “Would you rather share the bathroom with Fangs or Sweet Pea? Because I can go get one of them now if you want.” She pointed her thumb over her shoulder to emphasis her statement.

“Just keep to yourself and out of my way, Cha-Cha.” Cheryl said as she fixed herself with a stony gaze.

Toni smirked as she busied herself with emptying her things again. “Whatever you say, Bombshell.”

Cheryl tensed, surprised by the familiar nickname. She hadn’t heard it in months.

“Just stay away from me,” Cheryl scoffed before she slammed her bathroom door, leaving Toni alone in the bathroom. She slid down the door and just sat on the floor, trying to control her emotions.

The world indeed, was going to continue being cruel to her.

* * *

“Come on guys, this could actually turn out to be fun!” Betty said a little too enthusiastically.

“Speak for yourself cousin Betty,” Cheryl said, disdain dripping with every word.

Everyone had filtered into the kitchen after an hour to regroup and determine next steps – awkwardness hanging in the air. Sure they all went to school together, but the two friend groups rarely interacted. There was still a small amount of contempt between the Northside and Southside that neither group was willing to look over. No matter if people from the two sides were dating… or no longer dating.

“At least let’s try to get along,” Veronica pleaded, “And not kill each other.”

“I make no promises, Veronica,” Cheryl stated as she glared at the Serpents. She was slowly slipping back into her HBIC-self.

Veronica rolled her eyes. This frenemy relationship between her and the red-head was really starting to wear her down. “Look. We need to make a run to the store if any of us are going to survive in this place. Jughead and Betty, do you want to come with me and Archie to pick up supplies?

The couple simply nodded in response.

“Count me in as well,” Cheryl said. “I can’t have you guys buying just junk food. We’ll die before the virus even gets to us.”

“I’m in too.”

Cheryl quickly glanced at the pink-haired girl feeling even more annoyed than she had been in the past few hours since her arrival.

_This girl doesn’t know when to quit._

“And why pray tell, would you need to come?” Cheryl said a little angrily.

Toni ignored the bite in Cheryl’s question and simply shrugged, “To make sure we can actually get some edible food.”

Cheryl continued to glare at Toni, who simply held her gaze. Everyone else was trying to ignore the uncomfortable tension within the room, and find an escape from the two girls.

“Ok,” Archie said as he stood from one of the counter stools. “Ronnie sent her driver home so we’re going to take one of the cars in the garage to the store. If anyone who’s not going needs something specific, let us know. We’re going to make a quick list and then head out.”

Everyone nodded as they conversed about the essentials for the house and food that they would need for at least the week. Hopefully, they’d be able to grab a large pack of toilet paper. Why people decided to panic buy that, no one could understand.

Once the list had been complete, Veronica led them down to the garage below. Everyone’s eyes, except Veronica’s and Cheryl’s, instantly widened. The garage was just as extravagant as the rest of the mansion above them. They entered into a massive space, Veronica noting that it was a 20-car garage as she walked over to where the keys hung. Multiple brands and models of vehicles lined either side of the walls, illuminated by the canned lighting above that made them look like they sparkled. Leave it to Hiram Lodge to have the cars detailed on a regular basis to keep the dust off his prized possessions.

Veronica led them to a black SUV, a Mercedes Benz GLS she pointed out. As they all clambered into the car, Toni quickly caught a glimpse of a motorcycle in the corner. She made a mental note to check it out when they got back. The SUV was pretty spacious with 6 seats so no one had to be too crammed. Jughead and Betty had taken the middle seats in the car, which just left the very back seats open for Toni and… Cheryl.

Toni made her way to the back seat right behind Betty as Archie started the car. A few seconds later Cheryl made her way into the car, rolling her eyes at the predicament she found herself in.

“Should have sat in the back where you belong, you insufferable smurf,” Cheryl snapped at Jughead who simply ignored her.

Cheryl made her way to sit next to Toni, looking everywhere but at said girl. Too busy trying not to focus on the her, Cheryl caught her heeled foot on the corner of Jughead’s seat and began to fall. But before she hit the seat, two strong hands shot out and gripped her waist.

Cheryl and Toni made eye contact, their faces mere inches from one another due to the space in the car. Toni looked just as surprised by her actions as Cheryl did. Cheryl could feel the heat emanating from Toni’s hands on her bare skin just above the hem of her skirt. She shivered slightly from the touch. It felt so right. It felt like old times. Everything was supposed to be this way. But it wasn’t.

Cheryl cleared her throat and swiftly scooted to the opposite side of the car, trying to get as far away from Toni and her warm, soft hands. “I didn’t need your help,” she said slipping back into her HBIC-self.

Toni didn’t answer her. Simply huffed out in slight annoyance and looked out her window as Archie exited the garage.

* * *

The drive to Costco was fairly quiet with the exception of Veronica messing with the radio. Toni seemed to be the only one annoyed that the raven-haired girl couldn’t choose a damn station. She heard Jughead and Betty murmuring about something, no doubt how Jughead was going to write some obscure apocalyptic novel based on their current circumstances. And then there was the noise coming from beside her. Cheryl was furiously typing away at her phone. Her long finger nails clicking away at the phone screen. Toni took another deep breath, still staring out of her window watching sign by sign fade from her view on the highway.

How the hell she had ended up in this situation, Toni still couldn’t figure out. One minute she and the gang were settling into their Airbnb and then she was moving into a room across from her ex-girlfriend. At least their Airbnb host refunded them the full amount of their stay and Veronica had extra space. But that still didn’t make her feel better about being so close to Cheryl, for who knows how long! Toni was starting to develop a headache from everything that had happened within the last few hours.

After the tiring months she had just gone through, she was looking forward to getting away from Riverdale and spending time with her friends. But with this whole COVID thing happening, all her plans just went down the drain. Not to mention being in close proximity to Cheryl again. She hadn’t been this close to the red-head since their breakup before senior year. She ended up leaving the Vixens squad just to avoid seeing Cheryl outside of their normal class schedule. But now she was being bombarded by that familiar scent of cherries and vanilla. It was still as intoxicating as the first time she had smelled Cheryl’s perfume.

Being close to Cheryl again was flooding Toni’s mind with endless memories. Specifically, memories of their iconic road trip the summer before their junior year. Riding around the west coast together on the back of Toni’s beloved motorcycle. Nights walking the city streets and kissing under the stars. Coming to the realization that they were both capable of loving someone and someone loving them back. It was the last time Toni had been to California. But now the universe had brought her and Cheryl back to the place where they had fallen in love. Some hilarious joke this was turning out to be.

The one thing still on Toni’s mind that she could never stop thinking about was why? Why did it all end? She still didn’t quite understand what happened the summer before their senior year. Why did the girl who was so enamored and obsessed with their relationship just decide to call it quits? Was it Toni’s fault? Had she done something to change Cheryl’s feelings towards her? Or was it Cheryl pushing her away? Pushing her away to…what? Keep her safe? Keep her away from something she didn’t want to share?

Before Toni could think of any other reasons as to why the love of her life had just decided to give her the cold shoulder, Archie was pulling into the parking lot of Costco. The place was a mad house. Other people seemed to have had the same idea of stocking up early before isolating themselves indoors. They all climbed out of the car to discuss their plan of action before walking into the jungle of people.

“I think we need to split up to cover more ground,” Veronica stated. “Archie and I will grab cleaning supplies and paper goods. Jughead and Betty, you’re on frozen and fresh foods. Cheryl and Toni, non-perishables.”

“Wait a minute,” Cheryl said holding her hand up, “Why are you pairing me and Toni together!”

 _Oh so she does remember my name._ Toni thought.

Betty rolled her eyes. “Cher, seriously. We don’t have time to argue about who we’re paired up with.”

“I would rather be paired up with you, or even the hobo than the faux pink lady,” Cheryl said indignantly as she crossed her arms.

“We don’t have time for this, Blossom,” Jughead gritted. “Just deal with it.”

“The sooner we get everything we need, the faster we can get back to the house,” Archie added.

“Whatever,” Cheryl said as she made her way to the front entrance, “Just remember to pick up fruits and vegetables and not microwave dinners,” she yelled to Jughead and Betty as Toni trailed behind her.

Once the Riverdale crew made it to the front entrance, each pair grabbed a cart and then went their separate ways per Veronica’s instructions. Cheryl led the way to the non-perishable section of the store as Toni begrudgingly pushed the cart. The pair kept a good distance from one another, trying to avoid the awkwardness of being put together. They silently made their way down each aisle, aimlessly throwing cans, boxes, and jars of beans, oats, peanut butter, pasta, chips, and who knows what else into the cart.

As Cheryl mindlessly threw a bag of trail mix behind her into the cart she heard it hit the ground.

_What the…_

Cheryl Blossom never missed, especially given her impeccable aim with a bow and arrow. And besides, the cart was less than a foot away. Cheryl quickly turned around to give Toni a piece of her mind for moving the cart, but the girl was nowhere to be seen, which only angered her more. She picked up the dropped bag of trail mix and scanned the remainder of the aisle for any signs of pink hair but still no Toni. Cheryl was not in the mood to play Marco Polo, especially not with her ex-girlfriend. She took one more look around the aisle before going off in search of Toni.

Cheryl peered down each aisle but was still unable to locate the girl. Each unsuccessful attempt was putting her into a more sour mood. By the time she made her way to the front of the store, she finally caught sight of her. Toni was perusing the shelves over by the photo center.

_Of course she’d be there._

“What the hell are you doing?” Cheryl chided as she marched over to Toni with fury in her eyes.

Toni continued to look at the shelves, throwing a few items into the cart, “Just picking up a few things.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “That’s not on this list, Topaz!”

“Well it’s on mine,” Toni answered as she grabbed a large bottle of liquid and placed it in the cart.

“We’re supposed to be gathering just the essentials!”

Cheryl set the bag of trail mix she’d been carrying around into the cart and looked at the items Toni had added.

“Really?” Cheryl said as she picked up one of the bottle. “What could you possible need developer solution for during this pandemic?”

“To develop film, Cher. Why else?” Toni said, their fingers brushing together as she grabbed the bottle from Cheryl and placed it back into the cart.

Cheryl stood there a little stunned from not only the slight touch that sent a wave of electricity through her body, but the nickname she hadn’t heard from the short girl in months. Her attempt to suppress those old feelings was getting harder and harder. She was always so skilled at forming a façade of not caring and keeping her walls built up, but she couldn’t do that around Toni. The girl had some mysterious way of being able to break down Cheryl’s walls and allow her to just be herself. There was no need for her to try and be someone else with Toni.

_Damn her and her ways._

Cheryl cleared her throat and attempted to push all those thoughts from her mind, “You brought your camera with you?”

“Of course,” Toni shrugged, “You know I always have it with me.”

Cheryl did know. That was a dumb question to even ask, seeing as Toni would practically sleep with the thing.

The awkwardness between the two was beginning to settle back in. Cheryl just wanted this torture to end. But was it really torture? On one hand she wanted to be free from Toni Topaz and just close herself off in her bedroom at Veronica’s. On the other, she wanted nothing more than to spend all her time with Toni. Cheryl was having a lot of conflicting feelings right now, and just needed some space to figure it out.

“We grab everything we needed to?” Toni asked, breaking Cheryl from her train of thought.

Cheryl made eye contact with her and then checked the list on her phone, “I think so,” she confirmed as she scrolled through the list. Just then her phone buzzed with a text notification.

**_Text Message from Cousin Betty_ **

**Betty:** We’re at the front ready to checkout if you guys are.

 **Cheryl:** On our way cousin.

“Betty just texted,” Cheryl said as she lowered her phone to make eye contact with Toni. “They’re at checkout. Move it, Cha-Cha.” And with that she turned on her heel and started walking away, leaving Toni alone with the cart.

Toni rolled her eyes and started pushing the cart to the checkout line.

* * *

The group made it back to the mansion surprisingly fast as the sun was starting to set. Archie had stepped on the gas a little more mainly due to Jughead’s incessant complaining about being cramped in the back with all the supplies. Turns out the car wasn’t big enough for everyone and everything they bought.

As soon as everything had been unloaded from the car and brought to the kitchen, everyone else in the household pounced on the food.

“Savages,” Cheryl mumbled.

“Wait, wait guys,” Veronica said raising her hands, “I know you’re all hungry and it’s been a long day. But just give us a few minutes to get some food cooked up. We’re planning on grilling some burgers and hanging by the pool.”

“They’re not going to be as good as Pop’s but it’ll taste good,” Archie added.

“Sounds great to me!” Kevin piped in.

“Awwww but just a little snack,” Fangs complained, “We haven’t eaten anything since boarding the plane.”

“Yeah,” Sweet Pea added rubbing his stomach, “I’ve gotta feed this black hole.”

Toni rolled her eyes, “Chill, boys. Food will be ready in a bit. In the meantime…” She threw a large bag of potato chips at Sweet Pea, “Snack on these you children.”

An hour later everyone was chilling outside around the large firepit by the pool. The sun had completely disappeared and the heat from the fire was giving off a nice warmth against the chilly wind. Everyone was full of food and just enjoying being around each other. Except for Cheryl.

Any other time she would have loved being surrounded by people. She craved the attention of others, but after this past summer, she had decided to keep everyone at bay. There was no point in letting other people get close to her. They either ended up leaving or she’d leave them. That seemed to be the way that Cheryl was going to live the rest of her life.

“We should play a game!” Kevin exclaimed as he took a sip of his beer.

Jughead and Betty had managed to get a whole bar at Costco with their fake IDs. Everyone was teetering on the edge of tipsy.

“I’m down,” Archie said, looking to Veronica who simply nodded.

“Me too,” Josie added.

“Depends on what we’re playing Keller,” Fangs said smirking, “Wouldn’t mind playing 7 minutes in heaven with you.”

Kevin slightly blushed as Sweet Pea gagged at the comment.

“Get a room,” Jughead said as he wrapped his arms around Betty.

“Count me out,” Cheryl said as she stood from the group, “I think I’ve spent enough time with you unruly bunch as it is. Try not to make too much of a ruckus.” She turned on her heel and left the group to chat away, unaware of a certain pair of dark brown eyes following her every step.

Cheryl made it to her room and locked the door behind her. It had been a stressful day and all she wanted to do was escape from everyone. She walked over to the night stand with the books and randomly selected one.

_The Art of War._

How ironic, Cheryl thought. She’d read the book a dozen times, but was always learning something different each time. She made herself comfortable on the windowsill seat and began skimming the pages. As she was reading though, she couldn’t help but overhear the group in the backyard. She glanced out of the window and watched as everyone was laughing and enjoying themselves around the fire. Despite this weird time they were in, no one seemed to have a care in the world. They were all just living in the moment. Why was she even here? Everyone was having a good time without her. She was just taking up space essentially.

Cheryl glanced back down at the book in her hands, but could no longer focus on the book. She kept reading the same sentence over and over. Her mind drifted to Toni. The girl who she had talked to more in the last few hours than in the past few months. She looked out the window again and let her eyes land on the pink-haired girl who was finishing off her beer. Despite everyone else in the group laughing and relishing in each other’s company, Toni was quiet. She was sitting in one of the large couches curled up by herself, simply watching everyone around her. Cheryl wondered what was going through the other girl’s mind. Was Toni as unhappy as she was? Was she pissed at seeing Cheryl again?

She couldn’t read the girl anymore. Something was different, but Cheryl couldn’t figure out what it was. Toni was surprisingly civil with her, despite everything that had happened that summer. It made Cheryl curious, but also angry that she didn’t know what Toni was feeling or why she was being so…nice?

She continued to stare at the festivities outside, when she caught Toni looking up at her window. Her face devoid of any expressions. Cheryl briefly kept contact with the pink-haired girl before jumping up from the seat as if Toni’s gaze had burned her. She looked back down at the book in her hands re-reading the same sentence before slamming it shut and throwing it on the window seat. Sleep was going to be her only escape for now. She’d deal with what the following day would bring her when the sun rose. As she drifted off to sleep, she thought of the last quote she had read from the book:

_“The wise warrior avoids the battle.”_

Perhaps Toni was just biding her time until she had the advantage over Cheryl. Or maybe Toni really didn’t want to fight with her. Either way, Cheryl wasn’t going to let her win.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What happened that summer with Cheryl and Toni??? Guess you’ll just have to read on to find out! Also, I’m pretty sure that Costco doesn’t have developer solution, but hey this is fiction. Costco can have whatever the hell I want it to have (also, I’ve never been bc I have a Sam’s membership lol).
> 
> Hoping to post the next chapter on Wednesday!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little more insight into Toni and Cheryl's relationship before their breakup. Flashback chapter!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to preface this by saying I am in no way an expert at photography. Still trying to learn how to develop my own film.
> 
> Appreciate everyone's comments and likes! Apologies for not responding, trying to finish writing all of these chapters!

_September 2018_

After getting back from their road trip to California, Cheryl and Toni spent the rest of summer preparing for junior year. They had completed their summer reading before leaving for California, so there really wasn’t anything for them to prepare for. Unless you counted the numerous parties the Northside students were throwing. There seemed to be an end of summer party every other night. Mostly at Reggie Mantle’s place since his dad was always on business trips. Which was the reason why Cheryl was currently reading _The Art of War_ in the living room of Thistlehouse.

Stupid Reggie Mantle and his antics. The next party was tonight and Cheryl was in the mood for chaos, per usual. Since his last party, Cheryl had been planning on getting her revenge on the black-haired boy after he messed with Toni. Nobody messed with her girlfriend and got away with it. It didn’t matter if he was drunk or not. Sure he had dumbly spilled his drink on Toni and then continued to flirt with her, but Cheryl had been furious. Toni, on the other hand, thought the whole situation was hilarious. No. Tonight, Cheryl was going to cause some chaos.

_"Ponder and deliberate before you make a move.”_

Cheryl continued flipping through the pages of the book until she heard clattering and noises from above her.

“TT?” she called out, closing the book and waiting for a response.

She was met with silence.

Cheryl stood from the couch and climbed the stairs to the second floor of the house.

“TT, are you ok?” Cheryl called out again.

There was still no response from her girlfriend, but she could hear shuffling behind one of the bedroom doors. Cheryl slowly opened the door and was met with darkness; the only light coming from the hallway.

“Close the door! Close the door!” Toni exclaimed, quickly brushing past Cheryl to shut the door.

The room was engulfed in darkness once again. Cheryl couldn’t see a thing and had no idea where Toni had disappeared to after closing the door.

“Toni, what the hell are you doing?” Cheryl asked as she blindly looked for the light switch in the room.

There was a loud thump, followed by Toni cursing, “Shit!”

“TT? Are you ok?”

“Fine, Cher. Just tripped over this damn box. Don’t turn on any lights!”

Cheryl stopped searching for the light switch and decided to find Toni in the darkness by following her voice. That ended up being a bad idea as she tripped over the same box Toni did.

“Toni!” Cheryl scolded from the floor. “I can’t see anything in here. Why can’t we turn on the lights?”

“I’m developing film babe. Just let me finish loading the film onto the spool.”

Cheryl stood and stayed where she was while she listened to Toni work. She wasn’t about to trip over anymore boxes, “How do you even know what you’re doing is correct? Unless you can see in the dark, which is something I would have loved to have known beforehand.”

Toni laughed, “I’ve done this a million times babe. Sorry for just taking this room.”

Cheryl waved her hand at the apology, but realized Toni couldn’t see her, “It’s fine, TT. Not like anyone else was using any of these rooms. I’m just happy you found a place to do what you love.”

“I mean I love doing you in our bedroom too,” Toni joked.

Cheryl rolled her eyes, still forgetting that Toni couldn’t see her reactions. Before she could think of a witty comeback Toni was bumping into her.

“Whoops, didn’t see ya there, Bombshell!” Toni laughed at her poorly executed joke. She grasped Cheryl’s waist, giving her a small squeeze before walking past her to the light switch.

Once turned on, Cheryl blinked quickly to get her eyes adjusted to the room. Toni had taken up her father’s old study, even though he had never really used it when he was alive. The bookshelves in the room were filled with business books and small trinkets covered in a thin layer of dust. Cheryl looked down at her feet and saw that the box she had tripped over was a bankers box filled with files. Probably more of her father’s shady dealings.

The curtains had been closed off and a long piece of string was strung up from one end to the other where a few clothespins were hanging. On the desk in front of the curtains were a few white bottles, a bucket, measuring cups, and a black container that Cheryl had never seen before. She saw an empty film canister and a few scraps of film cut up on the desk as well.

“So, what exactly are you doing?” Cheryl said as she walked over to the desk to examine everything.

“Developing film, babe,” Toni replied opening the black container.

“Show me?” Cheryl asked, looking a little out of place.

Toni smiled, “Of course. But I have to warn you, it’ll probably be pretty boring to you.”

"You could never bore me, TT.”

“Just wait. You’ll be dying to leave.

Toni grabbed one of the bottles and held it up to Cheryl, “This is developer solution. It’s what helps make the image in the film appear,” she grabbed a measuring cup and filled it with some of the solution, adding in some water from the bucket on the desk and stirring them together with a rod.

Toni grabbed two more of the white bottles and another two measuring cups before continuing, “Next, I’m going to dilute my stop bath and fixer with water. The stop bath brings development to an end, while the fixer makes the developed image on the film permanent.” Toni measured out her supplies in the other two measuring cups and set everything aside.

“What about the last bottle?” Cheryl asked as she pointed to the last white bottle on the table.

“That’s the wetting agent,” Toni replied. “It’s part of the last step. Makes the film dry quicker and evenly.”

“Ok, now what? Do you just pour everything into the little black container there?”

Toni chuckled, “No babe. And that little black container is called a developer tank. I had to wind the film up in the dark and put it in there so the light didn’t damage any of the images.”

“I understand now,” Cheryl said, “You may continue.”

Toni smiled. “Here comes the boring part babe. I’ll pour the developer into the tank and agitate it for awhile.”

Cheryl gave her a confused look.

“Basically, I’m just shaking it, but in slow movements.”

Cheryl nodded in understanding.

“Then I’ll do it with the stop bath solution and then the fixer. That whole process takes about 15 minutes.”

Toni grabbed the measuring cup with the developer solution and handed it to Cheryl.

“You want me to pour it in?” Cheryl asked, “But I don’t want to ruin it, TT!”

“Babe, you’re literally just pouring this into the tank. Nothing is going to get ruined.”

Cheryl gave her an unsure look before taking the cup in her hand and tentatively pouring it into the tank. Toni put the cap back on the developer tank and began agitating the liquid, keeping track of the time on her phone. Cheryl watched her for the next ten minutes, trying to be patient, but her girlfriend was right. She was already bored. Toni dumped out the developer solution into an empty bucket once the time was up and continued the developing process with the stop bath and fixer. Cheryl was now sitting on the desk with her arms crossed as she continued to watch the pink-haired girl.

“I told youuuu,” Toni mocked as she emptied the fixer into the bucket with the other used solution.

“I didn’t say anything,” Cheryl said annoyed.

“Babe, I can read you like a book,” Toni chuckled, “I can see that this is boring you.”

“I can’t help it,” Cheryl whined, “This is taking too long.”

“We’re almost done. I just need to rinse the film with water a couple of times and add the wetting agent.” Toni went to work on the last step as Cheryl continued to watch.

“What’s the point of shooting with film if you have to go through this tedious process?”

“That’s the whole point, babe. This process is part of my love for photography.”

“But you could easily get the same pictures with a digital camera, right?”

Toni pondered Cheryl’s question for a minute as she filled the developer tank one more time with clean water and the wetting agent and began agitating it. “I love that I have complete control. I decide how much light to expose or not expose to my photos. I get to create something that’s entirely my own. When I look back on my pictures, I know I put all my effort into creating that image. An image that tells a story and shows all the emotions I was feeling in that moment. It’s mine and mine alone.”

Cheryl hung on every word of Toni’s as she watched her girlfriend empty the developer tank for the last time. At the beginning of this process Cheryl hadn’t really understood Toni’s love for photography. But now, after watching her explain it and how much care she took in producing her photos, it all clicked. This was something Toni poured her heart into and was gracious enough to want to share with the world. Cheryl was so in love with this girl. This girl who made her safe and saw beauty in every little thing.

“You ready to see the final product?” Toni asked as she started taking the tank apart.

“Wait we can see them now? They don’t have to be converted into like an actual copy or something?”

Toni shook her head, “We can see the images now if I hold it up to the light. They just won’t look like the actual picture until later since these are just the negatives. We might look a little like ghosts.”

Cheryl looked at her in slight disgust before jumping off the desk and standing next to her. Toni unraveled the film from the spool and removed some of the excess water before holding it up to the light for the red-head to see. Cheryl was amazed at the rawness of the pictures. They were black and white pictures from their 3-month road trip. Toni was right that some of the photos with people looked more like ghosts, but she was still in awe. She briefly remembered Toni taking a few of them, but some of the photos she hadn’t known about. Each photo was crisp and well-defined.

Toni took the spool of film over to the string she had tied up earlier and attached one end of the film to a clothespin on the line. She waved Cheryl over to her, “Come here. I want to show you my favorite.”

Cheryl walked behind the desk to join Toni and waited for her girlfriend to lift the film back up to the light. Toni pointed to a certain image in the reel and held it close to Cheryl’s eyes so she could see the image better. She was expecting to see a photo of the Hollywood sign or even Toni’s bike, but the photo in front of her almost had her in tears.

In the picture, Cheryl was sitting on the Santa Monica beach looking over her shoulder. The sun was beginning to set in the background. She wasn’t looking directly into the camera, but somewhere off in the distance – laughing. She was actually smiling and laughing. The picture was taken from a slight distance and Cheryl didn’t remember Toni taking the picture. But her eyes said it all. They were filled with nothing but love.

“Babe, you’re not even in this photo,” Cheryl said. “How can this be your favorite?”

Toni smiled as she put another clothespin on the bottom of the film reel to let it dry, “Because Cher, look at you. You’re so care-free. There’s literally nothing holding you back in this moment. You don’t have anything to worry about or be responsible for. You’re having fun! You’re being you.” Toni wrapped her arms around Cheryl’s waist, “And that’s what I love about you. I love seeing you be free and happy.”

Cheryl leaned down to connect their lips in a soft kiss. She didn’t deserve Toni, but knew that if she voiced that, Toni wouldn’t let her keep saying that. This girl has stuck with her through everything and she wasn’t going to give her up anytime soon.

Cheryl pulled away from Toni for a moment to look into her eyes, “I love you too,” she connected their lips again, smiling into it.

“Once I get these printed, I’m keeping that photo with me forever.”

“I doubt that,” Cheryl laughed, “You’ll get tired of looking at me.”

Toni scoffed in mock annoyance, “I could never. It’ll just take me awhile to get them printed since I don’t have a scanner. Been saving up all my earnings from the Whyte Wyrm to get one. I guess I’ll just take these to the drug store to get them printed.”

Cheryl looked at her with a questioning look, “How much are they?”

Toni shrugged, “The scanners? Not sure. Depends on the brand and model. I’ve been looking at the Epson printer. Runs two-hundred to maybe two-hundred and fifty dollars.”

“Got it,” Cheryl said as she pulled her phone out from her back pocket and started typing away.

"Babe, what are you doing?”

Cheryl ignored her and continued typing away.

“Cheryl!” Toni chided, as she tried to look at Cheryl’s phone.

“There!” Cheryl said excitedly. “Just ordered you one on Amazon. Should get here tomorrow.”

“Cherrrr!” Toni whined, “Baby, I said I was going to get it.”

“Ma cherie,” Cheryl said taking Toni’s face in her hands, “After what you showed me today, I just want to help support your art in any way that I can. Even if it’s just ordering you equipment to make your photography dreams come true.”

“How did I get so lucky,” Toni said as she grabbed Cheryl’s hands from her face and intertwined their fingers.

“I’m the lucky one, TT,” Cheryl responded.

“I can’t wait!” Toni said eagerly, “I’ll scan all the negatives and hook it up to my laptop so I can edit them and then print them!”

Cheryl loved seeing her girlfriend so excited and was utterly amazed that her girlfriend could capture such beautiful things in film without the digitalization of the world.

“You’re so talented, TT! I can’t wait to see how the prints turn out.”

Toni smiled, “With you as my muse, they’ll be absolutely beautiful,” she pecked Cheryl’s lips and held onto the love of her life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love Choni. Like literally haven’t been this in love with a ship in like 4 years. 2016 - that fucked up year on the CW (iykyk). Anyway, hope everyone is enjoying the story.
> 
> I am writing some really long chapters right now and I'm exhausted. But don't fret, I'm not going anywhere. I have things pretty much ending around 20 chapters. I'm off work the rest of the week so hopefully I can get a lot of writing done. Once I finish the entire story you guys can expect quicker updates! Next chapter will be posted Friday/Saturday!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Second day of quarantine for the group!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sup homies. Here's the next chapter! I think this is one of my favorites. I'm working on Chapter 16 right now, but am definitely having a bit of writer's block. Good thing we're only on Chapter 5, so I have some time to fix anything I don't like.

Cheryl had slept like shit. Memories and dreams of a certain pink-haired girl kept popping up in her mind all night. But here she was, up at 7AM before anyone else in the house. She had always been an early riser and being on vacation wasn’t going to mess with her routine, no matter how horrible she had slept. Cheryl made her way to the backyard and briefly remembered Veronica telling the group that her family kept some workout gear in the shed. She opened up the shed in the backyard and basically found a mini gym. There were a few workout machines lined up on the walls, along with a punching bag, some free weights, yoga mats and bands. Cheryl grabbed one of the yoga mats and found a patch of grass next to the pool to do her yoga workout.

She was dressed in black yoga pants and a fitted, red long sleeve crop top. The LA morning weather was brisk and a welcomed feeling for Cheryl to clear her head. She went through her yoga flow sequence, taking in deep breaths and trying to restore her energy. She wasn’t sure how much time had passed since she left her phone in her bedroom, but her routine usually took an hour and she was coming to the end of it. There was a realm of peace and quiet that surrounded her as she entered into Savasana. Cheryl laid down on her back, palms up, and began to relax her muscles and clear her mind.

_Deep breath in. Deep breath out._

Unfortunately, her time in this relaxed state didn’t last long. She heard the slamming of a door and footsteps coming closer towards her. Cheryl didn’t want to open her eyes, but the noises were becoming a distraction. Whoever had intruded on her was now in the shed/mini gym and making a ruckus. Her muscles began to tense, which was the opposite of what she should be doing now. With one more deep breath she opened her eyes to the shining sun above her and sat up.

Of course the interloper had to be Toni Topaz, come to ruin another one of Cheryl’s peaceful days. Well, as peaceful as it could be during this time. She watched the shorter girl survey the equipment in the shed before making eye contact with her.

Chery crossed her arms, “Why pray tell are you out here?”

“To work out,” Toni replied as she grabbed a pair of free weights, “Duh.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes at Toni’s sassiness, “You ruined my concentration.”

“Didn’t realize the world revolved around, Cheryl Blossom,” Toni remarked, “There’s plenty of space out here for us to ignore each other, like we’ve been doing for the past seven months.”

_Ouch._

“Fine,” Cheryl said as she laid back down on her mat, “Just stay over there.”

Toni rolled her eyes in response and continued gathering some equipment. She found a spot on the opposite side of the shed away from the red-head and began to stretch. Cheryl was just getting back into a relaxing state again when music started blaring. She sat up abruptly and saw the source of the noise coming from Toni’s phone.

“Do you mind!” Cheryl snapped, “They invented headphones for a reason!”

“Sorry? What was that? I can’t hear you over my music,” Toni sassed back, as she cupped her hand over her ear.

Cheryl rolled her eyes again and tried to finish her workout, but she had lost all concentration. As she laid there on the mat, she couldn’t help but steal glances at the other girl. Toni was wearing all black again. A pair of black leggings that hugged her body in all the right ways, a black Nike sports bra, and black sneakers. Her pink-hair was tied up in a high ponytail, a few strands falling around her face. Cheryl watched Toni begin lifting weights out of the corner of her eye, but eventually she found herself just staring at her ex-girlfriend. Well, mostly staring at her ass.

Cheryl hadn’t completely forgotten how hot she was, but it had been months since she’d been this close to her. Toni was beyond attractive; you’d have to be blind not to see that. Beautiful, sassy, and smart as fuck. The more Cheryl stared at her, the more pain she felt for giving up such an amazing person. It was her fault. She knew it, but didn’t want to face it. At some point Cheryl had zoned out, but was still looking in Toni’s direction.

“Take a picture, Red. It’ll last longer,” Toni said as she smirked at Cheryl.

Cheryl quickly snapped out of it and looked away, “Don’t flatter yourself. I wasn’t looking at you.”

“Whatever you say, Cher.”

_That damn nickname._

Cheryl couldn’t stand being next to Toni any longer and she had lost all concentration. She rolled up her mat and put it back in the shed without another glance at the other girl as she walked away. Again, she didn’t notice a pair of soft brown eyes following her as she disappeared into the house. Cheryl walked into the kitchen and went to fill a glass with water. As she was drinking it, Josie came into the kitchen wearing a similar outfit to hers, minus the red.

“Hey girl!” Josie said a little too perkily, “I was going to come join you, but looks like you’re already done?”

Cheryl shrugged, “Serpent girl ruined it.”

“Well, I’d get used to it,” Josie chuckled as she grabbed an apple from the kitchen counter, “You don’t think I feel weird with Sawyer being here?”

“Who?”

“Sweet Pea, Cheryl.”

“You guys seemed pretty cozy last night,” Cheryl grumbled.

“Not the point! Just that if I can be cordial with him, you can do that with Toni. We’re all stuck in this together. ” She then left Cheryl alone in the kitchen to join Toni outside.

Cheryl rolled her eyes. She needed people to stop reminding her that they were forced to breathe the same air for who knows how long. Cheryl was hoping it was just going to be a few weeks, but based on the news it seemed more like months. She finished off the rest of her water and set the glass in the sink before heading back up to her room to shower.

She locked the door to her bedroom and grabbed her small travel bag of toiletries from her suitcase. When she got into the bathroom, she turned the shower on and tested the temperature of the water. Once the water was warm, Cheryl undressed and walked inside the tub, closing the curtain behind her. As the water flowed through her hair and down her face, her mind began to wander back to the interaction with Toni. The girl seemed to have no ill-will towards her and Cheryl was completely confused. Their breakup was not one bit pleasant and she was sure Toni would be holding a grudge; the girl was in a gang after all.

They had broken up at the end of last summer right before senior year. The absolute worst time to break up, in Cheryl’s opinion. Granted, it was mostly her fault, but Toni didn’t fight. She didn’t fight for them. But could Cheryl really blame her? After everything she had done? Cheryl hadn’t told anyone the truth about why she decided to end things with Toni. Instead using the excuse that she wanted to focus on herself and they had different goals for college that didn’t align. Cheryl knew it was a lie and was pretty sure Toni knew it too. Yet, here they were. Separated for seven months now. Seven grueling months that haunted Cheryl and left her with her heart wrenching decision.

Cheryl felt a few tears roll down her cheeks as she finished showering, but they quickly disappeared with the rest of the water down the drain. Turning off the faucet, she pulled back the curtain and was about to step out of the tub when the bathroom door burst open.

Standing on the other side was Toni. Cheryl had forgotten to lock the other door, completely disregarding the fact that they had to share the bathroom. Toni’s eyes were wide with surprise as she gave Cheryl a quick up down, noticing the predicament she was in.

“What the hell!” Cheryl screamed as she tried her best to cover herself with the shower curtain, “Knock much?”

“Sorry!” Toni exclaimed still staring at Cheryl, “I didn’t know you were in here. The door wasn’t locked.”

“I know, Sherlock. I forgot!”

There was a brief moment of silence between the two.

“Well, get out!” Cheryl yelled.

Toni smirked as she crossed her arms and leaned against the door frame, “Nothing I haven’t seen before.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “Toni!”

“Cheryl!”

Another brief moment of silence.

“Why are you so aggravating?” Cheryl said with a piercing glare.

Toni simply shrugged as she made her way further into the bathroom, much to Cheryl’s dismay. She opened up the bathroom closet and grabbed a large white towel, which she handed to Cheryl. Their eyes met for a brief moment before Cheryl quickly snatched the towel from Toni’s grasp.

“Maybe someone made me that way,” Toni responded as she made her way out of the bathroom, “Veronica wants to talk to everyone downstairs.” And with that last comment, Toni closed the door behind her.

Cheryl had no idea what just transpired, but she was beginning to shiver from her shower. She took the towel that Toni had handed her and wrapped it around herself. As she stepped out of the shower, she realized she had forgotten to even grab one in the first place. But somehow, somehow Toni had noticed and had gotten a towel for her. Cheryl was even more confused now. Surely Toni hated her. There’s no way that she couldn’t. Shaking those thoughts from her mind, she began to get ready for the day.

* * *

Cheryl’s idea of “getting ready” wasn’t her usual outfit by any means, but she didn’t see the point in getting glammed up just to be surrounded by a bunch of people she called friends. Well, half of them were friends, the other she was still trying to figure out. She opted for another pair of black leggings and slightly oversized, pale green hoodie. Her hair was slightly curled and her makeup was light, but she still adorned her signature red lipstick.

Making her way to the kitchen she saw everyone else was finally awake, some looking a little more lively than others. Just as Cheryl had thought, everyone had opted for a much more comfortable look rather than dresses or jeans. Archie and Veronica were mulling around the kitchen cooking and preparing all sorts of breakfast food. In one of the corners of the kitchen, there was a giant farm table made out of dark wood with white accents that had bench-like seating. Josie and Kevin were helping to place the spread of food on the table.

“I could get used to this kind of cooking,” Fangs said as he eyed the food hungrily.

Indeed, Archie and Veronica had gone all out. The table was full of all sorts of food. Eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, toast, and a large bowl of fruit. Some would say that they had gone a little overboard. Sure, there were a lot of people in the house but the amount of food could feed an entire army.

“I wanted to get everyone together to discuss our current situation,” Veronica said as she placed a few condiments on the table.

“V, thanks so much for letting us crash,” Betty said as she gave her friend’s shoulder a little squeeze, “I can't believe our Airbnb was cancelled, but I guess it makes sense.”

Veronica gave Betty a small smile, “Let's all grab some food and see if we can come up with a plan of what to do next.”

Everyone slowly made their way to the food. Given the size of the table and benches, they weren't sitting on top of one another, but were closer than if they had their own individual seats. As everyone found a place to sit, Cheryl found herself next to Betty towards one of the ends of the table. The seat on her right was currently empty. She grabbed the bowl of fruit and placed some on her plate when someone plopped down next to her.

_Whyyyy._

“Oh my god,” Cheryl said meeting Toni’s eyes, “Are you serious right now?”

Toni chuckled, “What? This was the last seat.”

Cheryl looked around at everyone else noticing that Toni was right, “You could have asked one of your Serpent buddies to switch. It's not that hard to do.”

“Maybe I just like to see you squirm,” Toni smirked as she grabbed a strawberry from Cheryl’s plate and ate it.

_Is she… is she flirting? What is this madness?_

“Plus, I don’t think you’d want to sit next to Sweet Pea or Fangs as they shovel food into their mouth.”

Cheryl glanced over at the opposite end of the table to see Sweet Pea and Fangs currently devouring everything in front of them.

“Barbarians,” Cheryl muttered as she grabbed some other food.

“Is that my hoodie?” Toni asked, eyeing Cheryl again.

Cheryl’s eyes went wide as she looked down at the piece of clothing, “No!” she snapped.

“Really? Could have sworn I used to own a light green hoodie just like that. Went missing though.”

“It’s not yours!”

_Fuck, it totally was Toni’s. She’d completely forgotten. Why would **the** Cheryl Blossom even own this kind of clothing to begin with?_

Toni raised her hands in mock surrender, before filling her own plate with food. She was still dressed in her workout clothes and it had Cheryl feeling some type of way, which was something she did not want to be feeling right now.

Her thoughts were interrupted when Veronica began to address everyone at the table, “Has anyone looked at flights back to Riverdale?”

“Tried,” Jughead answered as he swallowed a fork full of pancakes, “There weren’t any flights available for like another week. And besides, the Serpents would have just been camped up in our trailers. LA is a much better place to chill.”

Betty nodded in agreement, “Yeah and our parents went off to Florida or something to visit family so no one’s in Riverdale.”

“Our parents just told us to stay put since school’s been cancelled,” Kevin added as he shared a look with Josie, “I mean I’m not complaining.”

“Yeah, both our parents aren’t in Riverdale either,” Archie said as he squeezed Veronica’s hand, “Ronnie and I were planning on just quarantining here until everything blows over.”

“If,” Cheryl emphasized, “everything blows over.”

Everyone looked over at Cheryl waiting for her response as to why she hadn’t just upped and left. She was, after all, the only person that didn’t really want to be holed up with everyone.

“Why are you chums looking at me?” Cheryl asked as she ate a piece of fruit.

No one said anything, still waiting for her response.

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “Not that it’s any of your business, but Thistlehouse is being renovated. Nana Rose is staying in another property of the estate. So I’m in no hurry to get home.”

“Looks like we’re stuck together until this pandemic dies down,” Toni said.

“And on that note, I'd like to address the elephant in the room,” Veronica said clasping her hands together on the table, “I know there's some tension between a few of us,” she briefly looked at Cheryl who rolled her eyes in response, “But let's please try not to kill one another. The virus wants to do that to us already. If we can all be civil with each other, we'll get through this.”

There was some mumbling around the table, but everyone was in agreement. It was going to be worse if they didn’t at least try to get along. That of course was going to be harder for some than others.

“Awesome!” Veronica added, “Feel free to use any of the facilities at Lodge Manor. There's the pool, a basketball court on the other side of the house, and my personal favorite, the movie theater. Everyone is welcome to use it whenever just please, no sex. That's where I draw the line.”

Sweet Pea raised his glass in the air, “Here's to Quarantining 2020!”

Everyone except Cheryl chuckled at Sweet Pea’s antics and raised their glasses. They were going to get through this. Number one priority though was to try and not kill each other in the process.

* * *

An hour later and everyone had moved to the pool. It was a particularly clear and sunny day. Archie was in the mood to play a few rounds of chicken with whoever wanted to try and beat him and Veronica. Betty and Jughead had stepped up to the plate, only to be defeated time after time. After finally giving up, they decided to just canoodle on one of the pool chairs and watch Sweet Pea and Josie attempt to dethrone Archie and Veronica.

Cheryl was sitting on another pool chair reading as the other hooligans splashed around in the pool. She had changed into a red one-piece suit and was wearing a black floppy hat, to keep the sun from her fair-skinned face. As soon as she had made it back to her room to change, she had thrown “Toni’s” hoodie to the bottom of her suitcase. She didn’t even remember packing it to begin with. As she flipped to another page in her book, someone came to stand right in front of her, blocking the sun.

“The Art of War?” Toni asked as she crossed her arms, “Interesting read. Pretty sure you’ve already read that a billion times.”

Cheryl set the book in her lap and glanced up at Toni. She really shouldn’t have, though. As soon as she laid eyes on Toni, her mouth ran dry and those damn feelings that made her skin tingle and summon butterflies in her stomach were back. Toni was wearing a light purple bikini with her hair tied in a bun, and damn, Cheryl had to keep herself from gawking. Her Serpent tattoo was barely visible under her bikini top, but Cheryl could still see it. The water on her caramel-skin glistened under the sunlight and slowly rolled down her arms and legs. Not to mention her toned abs were still fully on display.

“You know,” Toni continued, “It’s not a crime to have some fun.”

“Educating oneself is fun. Can’t have my brain going to mush with school closing down.”

“No, but you could read something a little more…uplifting?” Toni suggested, “Last time I checked, we weren’t preparing for a zombie apocalypse.”

“You never know,” Cheryl responded as she opened the book again, “I’m keeping my brain sharp for anything.”

Toni smiled, “Well, enjoy your reading of war tactics. Not sure what you plan on using that information for during this time.” She left Cheryl alone with her book and joined Sweet Pea and Josie on the side of the pool.

_Toni Topaz and her stupid face. And amazing body. And loving smile. And…_

Ugh. Cheryl was so confused and once again, her concentration had been broken. Toni was up to something. Cheryl wasn’t sure what it was yet, but having dated the girl for almost two years, she knew there was something. She tried to focus on her reading but was suddenly splashed with a bunch of pool water, making her shriek and jump up off the chair.

Sweet Pea emerged from the depths of the pool and busted out laughing, “Sorry there Red, didn’t see you.”

“You are so dead, Serpent!” Cheryl screamed.

Jughead and Betty chuckled at the situation.

“Lighten up Cheryl,” Betty said, trying her best to contain her laughter.

Cheryl was furious, “I would, Cousin Betty, if the hobo’s friends weren’t such imbeciles!” She turned quickly on her heels, that she was wearing for some reason by the pool, and walked back into the house, Toni quickly following her.

“Cher,” Toni called out as she met Cheryl at the bottom of the stairs, “Cher.”

“Can’t you leave me alone!” Cheryl said spinning around to meet Toni.

“I just wanted to apologize for Sweet Pea’s behavior. He knew you were sitting there and I told him not to jump, but he didn’t listen. And I wanted…”

“It doesn’t matter!” Cheryl interrupted as she walked up the staircase a bit.

“Wait, Cheryl,” Toni said grabbing the red-head’s hand.

Cheryl looked down at their entwined hands before immediately pulling hers back and crossing her arms. She was now towering over Toni as she was a few steps higher than the pink-haired girl.

“Speak!” Cheryl said agitated.

Toni took a deep breath before taking a few steps closer to Cheryl, one step keeping them apart, “Truce?”

Cheryl looked at her like she was crazy.

“I know this is super awkward for us.”

“Understatement of the year,” Cheryl mumbled.

“Can we just agree to be civil with one another? Is that too much to ask?”

Cheryl rolled her eyes in response.

“We have no idea how long this thing is going to last and we can’t keep walking on eggshells around each other.”

“I don’t see an issue with that.”

This time Toni rolled her eyes, “I’m being serious Cheryl! I don’t know what your deal is, but I’m pretty sure it has something to do with what happened at the end of last summer!”

_And there it was._

“I’m still trying to wrap my head around it. The least you can do is have one simple fucking conversation with me without being a bitch about it!”

There was a brief pause as Toni caught her breath. She wasn’t necessarily yelling at Cheryl, but it felt like it.

“You owe me that much at least,” Toni finished.

Cheryl hung her head in defeat. Toni was right in every way possible. She deserved an explanation, but Cheryl just wasn’t ready yet.

“Ok…” Cheryl said quietly.

“What?” Toni asked, expecting the red-head to just walk away from her.

“We can be civil around one another.”

“Well, at least it’s a start. Are we ever going to talk about what really happened last summer?”

Cheryl could feel her anxiety beginning to rise and all she wanted to do was escape. Her breathing was starting to increase and she had to shut her eyes to keep her heartrate down.

“I’m not pressuring you, Cher,” Toni said, noticing Cheryl’s slight panic at her question, “I just want you to tell me the truth… whenever you’re ready.”

Toni gave Cheryl one last look. Not one of hate or anger, but one of understanding. A soft smile and she was on her way back outside to join the others.

Cheryl was on the verge of tears and practically ran back to her room where she collapsed against the closed door of her bedroom. This time, she didn’t keep her tears at bay. She let them flow down her cheeks as she pulled her knees to her chest and buried her head between them. The truth was going to come out soon. Cheryl knew that. She was slowly losing her grip on the lid that was keeping it locked away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry lol. You guys know Choni is endgame, but there’s gotta be some angst. Are our two favorite characters working towards being civil? Well, at least Toni is. I honestly don’t know where this story is going lol. The reason for their breakup will be revealed more in depth in later chapters. Just hang in there with me!
> 
> Feel free to yell at me in the comments.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little insight into Choni's breakup that occurred at the end of last summer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really short chapter. There’s a tiny clue as to why Cheryl broke up with Toni, but it’s not much. SORRY! I will upload the next chapter tomorrow as this one is so short.

_August 2019_

“Just talk to me!” Toni yelled as she followed Cheryl into their bedroom, “Stop ignoring me!”

“I’m not ignoring you!” Cheryl said with the same tone as Toni’s, “I already told you.”

“Cut the bullshit!” Toni screamed, “Stop messing around. This isn’t funny.”

Cheryl spun around to face Toni and crossed her arms, “I’m being serious. It’s over!”

“You’re lying!” Toni said, “I can tell when you’re lying, Cher!”

Cheryl was trying to keep her facial expressions void of any emotions. Toni could read her like a book and she was doing her best to muster up her HBIC façade she wore around everyone else, “I’m not lying! We’re done. Fini! Why is that so hard to get through your thick skull?”

Toni massaged her temples trying to figure out what the hell was happening, “Look, I know you’ve been distant the past few weeks and I was giving you space until you felt like telling me,” she took a deep breath before continuing, “I know I’ve been pre-occupied with Serpent business, and I’m sorry if that’s made you upset in some way.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “False! I told you, I did some reflecting and this just isn’t working out anymore.”

“Stop it! Just stop it!” Toni growled in frustration.

“We want different things! This was never going to work out between us. Our ending was inevitable.”

There were tears in Toni’s eyes now, “I know you don’t mean that. After everything we’ve talked about? Our future together? Were you just lying to me the entire time?”

Cheryl turned around so her back was facing Toni. She couldn’t watch her cry as she was doing her best to keep from breaking down herself. She had to do this – breakup with the one person who she cared about most in this world. Toni would forgive her…eventually…hopefully.

“I’m not in love with you anymore,” Cheryl mumbled, her back still to Toni. Never had she imagined those words would fall from her mouth.

There was a sharp intake of breath from Toni, “Turn around, Cheryl.”

Cheryl didn’t.

“Turn around! Look me in the eyes, and say that to my face!”

Cheryl does her best to school her expressions before turning to look at Toni again. Tears were streaming down the shorter girl’s face. Cheryl could feel her heart breaking at the sight. It hurt so much, but she knew this had to happen.

Cheryl gulped and looked into Toni’s eyes, “I. Don’t. Love. You.” She saw the hurt and pain behind Toni’s eyes before they flickered to rage.

Toni brushed past Cheryl into their shared closet. A single tear fell from Cheryl’s eyes. She could hear Toni shuffling around in the closet and opening and slamming drawers. After a few moments, Toni emerged with her large black duffel slung over her shoulder, making brief eye contact with Cheryl. Her eyes were red and puffy, tears still falling down her face. She wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her Serpent jacket and walked to the bedroom door. As she turned to look at Cheryl, the red-head’s back was turned to her once again.

“Tell me to stay,” Toni said defeatedly, more tears falling down her cheeks, “Cher, please.”

Cheryl said nothing as tears silently fell down her face. She knew if she spoke, she wouldn’t be able to go through with this.

“Once I walk out this door, I’m never coming back.”

Silence enveloped them.

Toni realized she was fighting a losing battle. Whatever was really happening, Cheryl wasn’t going to tell her and it broke her heart even more. They were always so honest with one another, but the communication between them lately had just dissipated.

“I’ll always love you,” Toni mumbled before exiting the bedroom.

She heard Toni run down the stairs, the door of Thistlehouse opening and then slamming shut. The noise resonated throughout the house, letting Cheryl know how alone she was. Alone again like she’d been her entire life.

Cheryl let out a sob and collapsed on the floor overcome with grief and finally letting all of her emotions pour out of her. She hated herself for having to make this hard decision, but her hands were tied. No matter how much it hurt, Cheryl knew this was the best option. She quickly reached for her phone and sent out a quick text before tossing it away.

 **Cheryl:** It’s done.

She couldn’t breathe. Her breath became ragged and her vision began to blur. She was having a panic attack. Cheryl hadn’t had a panic attack since Toni came into her life. But now Toni was gone. She tried to get her breathing under control, but slowly her eyes became heavy and she passed out from all the emotions and pure exhaustion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’M SORRYYYYYYY! I can tell you right now, this chapter really pulled at my heartstrings as I was writing it. Sorry for all the mystery, but everything will be revealed later! I know some of you guys don’t like that they’re fighting and I DON’T LIKE IT EITHER! But this was the story that played out in my head. So not sure if this was obvious, but some of you guys guessed it, Cheryl is kind of being blackmailed. You’ll see why later!!!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little chapter more from Toni's POV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s a more uplifting chapter than the one before. Idk what I was doing with this chapter lol.

After spending another hour with everyone at the pool, Toni felt the urge to go check on Cheryl. Even though they weren’t together anymore, she could still tell when Cheryl was on the verge of breaking down. Despite everything that had happened between them, she still cared about her ex. Correction. She very much still cared about Cheryl.

So being Toni, she went to see how Cheryl was really feeling, thinking that giving the red-head an hour or so to cool down was enough. Cheryl wasn’t known to be very open about her feelings with their friends and honestly, neither was Toni. She’d have occasional heart to heart moments with Sweet Pea and Fangs, but they weren’t as deep as those she’d had with Cheryl. The conversations that she and Cheryl had were always a lot smoother and didn’t feel as forced, even if they were about the dumbest little thing. She knew her friends cared and would listen to anything she had to say, but the relationship she shared with Cheryl was just different. They understood each other on a level that no one really could. And over the past seven months of their separation, all Toni wanted was to have those moments back.

When Toni made it to the second floor of the house, she knocked on Cheryl’s door, but was met with silence. She cracked open the door a little and called Cheryl’s name but the girl was nowhere in sight. Toni knocked on the bathroom door, half expecting to have another encounter similar to the one where Cheryl had stormed out of the bathroom, yelling something about “Sapphic Serpent hands,” but was met with more silence. There weren’t many places Cheryl could have disappeared to. So after changing out of her suit and taking a quick shower, Toni went to find her.

Toni threw on some more comfortable clothes, opting for a pair of light grey joggers and simple black band t-shirt. She grabbed her camera and went to explore the rest of the property, hoping to find Cheryl on the way.

She wasn’t quite sure why she thought trying to find her ex was a good idea, especially since all of their previous meetings had been less than friendly. But something about seeing Cheryl standing on those stairs as she and the gang walked into the Lodge mansion had all her old feelings bubbling up and spilling over. She couldn’t keep her eyes off the red-head after that first confrontation. There were times during the fall semester that Toni found herself searching for Cheryl in the throng of students at Riverdale High, but eventually she stopped looking. Cheryl acted like she didn’t even exist anymore and it frustrated her to no end. Toni had so many unanswered questions for Cheryl and this pandemic was giving her the chance to finally confront her. She was tired of Cheryl giving her the cold shoulder and being the resident Ice Queen she reserved for everyone else.

Toni’s first stop on her exploration was the garage. She knew Cheryl wasn’t going to be there, but she wanted to check out the motorcycle she had seen yesterday. As she admired all the other luxurious cars, she finally found the motorcycle that had caught her eye. It appeared to be a Harley Davidson Duo-Glide. Late 1950s, early 1960s model if Toni had to guess. The frame of the bike sat low to the ground and was a deep turquoise color with white accents. The original suspension of the seat had been removed to be adjusted to a white two-up seater. Toni’s fingers glided over the bike, admiring the pristine condition. She was definitely going to have to ask Veronica if she could take it for a spin. It was hard to find this model in such good condition.

Toni exited the garage and continued exploring outside. She found the basketball court that Veronica had mentioned and couldn’t quite understand why anyone would need one on their property. But to each their own. She knew the Lodges were rich but seeing how large the property was, Toni realized they were absolutely loaded!

 _Were the Lodge’s as well off as the Blossoms?_ Toni wondered.

No one really knew, but probably close. Either way, it was more space than Toni was used to. Unless you counted her time at Thistlehouse, but even then, she didn’t know how large the Blossom estate was. It wasn’t like Cheryl walked her around the entire property giving her a rundown of Blossom history.

She continued walking the grounds and snapped a few pictures every so often as the sun was providing the perfect amount of light. Everything outside was just as glamourous and immaculate as the inside of the Lodge mansion. The grass was green and full of life. The trees were cleanly trimmed and swayed in the wind. Toni took a few more photos of the scenery and the weird fountain that was just randomly in the middle of the lawn, until she came upon a secluded area.

Hedged bushes stood about ten feet above a vast garden that was separated from the house, making it look like you were walking through a maze. The garden was beyond anything Toni had ever seen. A multitude of flowers and bushes flourished throughout the area, gravel trails separating the garden into various sections. There was another smaller fountain in the middle of the garden, this one looking better placed than the previous one she had seen. The private area somehow captured everything beautiful in the world. Or at least the parts Toni found absolutely magnificent.

Toni began to wander around, enjoying the sight of all the vibrant colors and floral smells. She was immediately drawn to a red section of the garden and began taking pictures. She knew the color wouldn’t come through on her prints as the film was black and white, but that didn’t stop her from capturing the way the petals bloomed from the center of the flowers and swayed in the wind. Toni continued to explore the garden and take photos when all of sudden she caught a flash of red out of her peripheral that wasn’t a flower.

Sitting on a bench in a corner of the garden was the girl Toni had set out to find. Cheryl was dressed in the similar outfit from this morning at breakfast, minus Toni’s hoodie. Instead, she was wearing a white cami and black leggings, her hair pulled into a tight bun. She was sitting with her legs curled underneath herself and her sandals on the ground next to her. Toni watched as Cheryl’s hand flawlessly glided over what looked like her sketchbook. Toni loved seeing this side of Cheryl – at peace and laser focus on whatever she had decided to draw, usually something beautiful. Just like her. She hated to break the red-head’s serene moment, but her need for answers was stronger.

Toni cleared her throat, making Cheryl jump and immediately slam her sketchbook shut before making eye contact with her intruder.

“Sorry,” Toni said, “Didn’t mean to startle you.”

“You didn’t,” Cheryl said as she cast her eyes down to her lap.

“Whatcha drawing?” Toni asked as she took a few tentative steps towards Cheryl.

“Nothing!” Cheryl said defensively, clutching her book closer to herself. She had abandoned trying to draw the flowers in the garden and had given into sketching a certain pink-haired girl. But Toni didn’t need to know that, “Stalking me, Cha-Cha?”

Toni chuckled, “I came to check on you. After what happened on the stairs, I just wanted to make sure you were ok.”

“I’m fine,” Cheryl said with a voice of finality, “So you can continue on your merry way.”

“Come on, Cher,” Toni said as she sat next to the red-head on the bench, “Talk to me.”

“There’s nothing to discuss, Toni,” Cheryl said still looking down at her lap.

Toni just looked at the girl for a few seconds. She remembered seeing this version of Cheryl, the closed-off, sassy girl before they started dating. The HBIC of Riverdale High who didn’t know what it meant to have someone care about her or even love her. This girl who had to wear a suit of armor around her heart and hide her true feelings behind a façade of bitchy and uncaring. Toni wanted to push her, to finally get answers to the questions that kept her up at night for the past seven months, but this Cheryl in front of her couldn’t take the brute force of an attack right now. She was going to have to wait a little longer.

Toni reclined on the bench and looked at the garden, “This place is bigger than anything I’ve ever seen.”

Cheryl scoffed, “The Blossom estate is well over three times this large.”

Toni shrugged, “Wouldn’t know. Never left Thistlehouse much.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “Because you were too scared to venture to the other properties.”

“Was not! I’m in a gang. I’m not scared of anything!”

“You said there were ghosts living on the grounds.”

“You cannot tell me that there weren’t!” Toni said pointing at Cheryl who was now looking at her with her arms crossed.

“You need to stop believing in Nana Rose’s old Blossom stories. They’re not real, Toni!”

“Then how do you explain my bike ending up in the barn that one night?”

“Someone moved it, obviously.”

“Yeah! A ghost! Your great, great, great grandfather or uncle or whatever!”

“You’re being a child,” Cheryl said rolling her eyes again, “It was just a bunch of rowdy kids trying to play a prank.”

“Cher! My keys were in the house! And I know you can’t drive a motorcycle. We already tried that once. And pretty sure Nana Rose didn’t just get up out of her wheelchair and decide she wanted to feel the wind whipping through her hair.”

Cheryl had to stifle a laugh at the thought of her Nana Rose trying to drive Toni’s motorcycle, “You’re being ridiculous. There are no ghosts residing on the Blossom premises.”

Toni held her hands up in surrender, “Whatever you say, but I know there are.”

“Well then let’s hope the Lodge’s don’t have any ghost friends of their own, or you’ll be running for the hills.”

Toni looked around the garden, faking being paranoid, “Don’t say that! Casper could be lurking around!”

“You do know it’s Casper the _friendly_ ghost,” Cheryl emphasized, “He wouldn’t hurt you.”

“Casper the friendly, Casper the benevolent, Casper of the unicorns and rainbows,” Toni rambled, “He’s still a ghost!”

“And you’re still a child,” Cheryl said sarcastically, “Honestly, how are you in a gang?”

“Serpent by blood,” Toni said proudly, not missing Cheryl’s sarcastic tone, “They couldn’t get rid of me even if they tried.”

Unlike how they had kicked Cheryl out. Well, it was more like Cheryl quit being in the Serpents after her and Toni had broken up. And in turn, Toni had quit being a River Vixen. They both had given up certain parts of their lives due to their breakup, but damn did they miss it.

In this moment though, Cheryl wasn’t thinking about what she had lost at the end of last summer. For once, after a long time, she was feeling at ease. She reveled in this small banter with Toni and didn’t want it to end. She had forgotten what it was like to be in Toni’s presence – how Toni could make her feel so safe and have her talking about nonsense, like these supposed Blossom ghosts. She missed this. She missed Toni.

“So,” Cheryl said breaking from her train of thought, “What were you taking pictures of?”

Toni looked down at the camera hanging from her neck, forgetting that she had brought it with her, too caught up in being with Cheryl. She fiddled with the knobs a bit before answering, “Random things. Hoping I can add them to my portfolio for college.”

Cheryl’s interest piqued at the mention of college, “Really?”

“Um, yeah,” Toni said a little shyly, “I’m headed to NYU in the fall. Full scholarship.”

Cheryl wasn’t really surprised that Toni was going to college, but she had no idea where Toni had chosen to go. Since their breakup, she didn’t know where Toni had applied to. When they were together, she had hoped Toni would follow her to Highsmith College, but that fantasy quickly dissipated when their relationship did. But a full scholarship? Cheryl wasn’t impressed, but proud. She knew Toni was more than capable of achieving such a feat. She felt a wave of excitement course through her and all she wanted to do was give Toni a giant hug. But that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

“I’m happy for you, Toni,” Cheryl said genuinely, “Photography?”

Toni nodded, “And you? Highsmith still?”

“Yes, I’m thinking pre-law.”

“Ahhh, yep I could see it,” Toni said, “Cheryl Blossom, badass attorney at law. I can just picture you walking into a court room dressed in a red power suit waiting to tear down whoever is opposing you.”

Cheryl couldn’t hold back her laughter this time. Leave it to Toni to find a way to throw in a few jokes.

Toni smiled, “I missed your laugh.”

Cheryl blushed a little, hoping Toni didn’t notice. She cleared her throat and looked around the garden, not wanting to see what Toni’s facial expressions were. Toni still made her a little nervous, but the good kind of nervous.

“Can I ask you a favor?” Toni asked, seeming a little sheepish.

_God, why were they being so weird around each other._

“Depends,” Cheryl said, “You going to murder me and bury my body in the garden?”

“Wow, morbid much,” Toni said sarcastically. She could tell Cheryl was starting to put her walls back up. And here she thought they had made some progress, “No, just the sunlight is actually perfect and I was wondering if I could take your picture?”

Cheryl gave her a confused look.

“For my portfolio!” Toni quickly added, “Just to diversify it and what not.”

Cheryl’s facial expression softened, “Um, sure,” she was surprised that Toni would want to photograph her, “But I still get veto power.”

“Always,” Toni answered as she rose from the bench.

“What do you want me to do?” Cheryl said, placing her sketchbook on the ground.

“Just sit back on the bench, kind of like you were lounging earlier, but with your legs laid out in front of you.”

Cheryl did as told as Toni got into position, checking the red-head’s pose through her camera lens. She could see Cheryl looking at her as she adjusted the exposure.

“Can you look over that way for me? Away from the camera,” Toni said pointing in the direction she wanted Cheryl to look.

Cheryl nodded and looked away from Toni. She sat there unmoving as she watched Toni from her peripherals approach her.

"You mind if I just…”

“What?” Cheryl interrupted as she turned her head to look at Toni. Their faces were mere inches from each other and Cheryl felt all the air leave her lungs as she stared into soft brown eyes.

Toni cleared her throat as she reached out to move Cheryl’s hair over her shoulder, her fingers gently grazing the side of Cheryl’s neck. Cheryl could feel a few goosebumps form at the base of her neck as Toni pulled her hand back. She felt her breathing return to normal when Toni took a few steps back, adjusting her camera as she went.

“Ok,” Toni said looking through her lens, “Head forward and just relax. Oh, and smile of course.”

Cheryl felt a little strange modeling for Toni at this exact moment, but it felt like old times. She remembered when Toni would pull out her camera and start taking pictures when she randomly found inspiration, or like right now, when the sun provided just the right amount of light. It was such a Toni thing to do. She had a way of knowing when the perfect time for a picture was, which seemed to be all the damn time. When they were together, Cheryl found herself posing for more pictures than she would have liked, but Toni would always make her feel comfortable. She couldn’t remember any instance when she actually had asked Toni to burn a picture. They always turned out amazing. Remembering all of those other times with the pink-haired girl had Cheryl smiling. She couldn’t remember the last time she had genuinely smiled since their breakup.

“No doubt these are going to look great, Bombshell,” Toni said as she lowered her camera from her face, “Sorry, I would continue our little photoshoot, but I’m out of film now.”

Cheryl snapped her head to meet Toni’s gaze. She had been so lost in thought that she hadn’t noticed that Toni had finished. “When can I see them?” she asked as she rose from the bench, grabbing her sketchbook from the ground.

“Maybe later this week?” Toni guessed as she walked back over to Cheryl, “I need to find a place to develop them first.”

Cheryl nodded, a peaceful silence settling between them for a moment until Toni’s stomach began to growl.

“Looks like someone is hungry,” Cheryl said raising an eyebrow.

“Swimming will do that to ya,” Toni shrugged, “No one really ate anything for lunch.” She checked her watch, “It’s almost dinner time anyway. Veronica and Archie are grilling again.”

“I hope to God it’s something other than burgers,” Cheryl scrunched up her nose in disgust, “That amount of cholesterol is not good for a human body.”

Toni laughed, “Try telling that to Jughead.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “I couldn’t care less about the hobo’s appetite. He has the diet of a five-year old.”

"I’ll make sure to tell the chefs to cook you something a little healthier,” Toni said as she started heading back to the house, Cheryl right behind her.

The group of kids did end up cooking burgers again, but had ventured into cooking chicken as well. Cheryl was thankful for that and had fixed herself a salad with the grilled chicken. She let Veronica and Archie know that she wouldn’t be eating anymore of their heavy-loaded food from now on, suggesting the same to the others around her who simply shrugged their shoulders and ignored her.

The rest of the evening was quite uneventful following dinner. Some found themselves chatting by the fireside by the pool again, while others had drifted to the living room to play Super Mario Party. Toni and Cheryl hadn’t talked to each other since their rendezvous in the garden, but that didn’t stop them from stealing glances at one another the rest of the night. Something had definitely shifted between the two. It was only a matter of time before Toni was going to find out the truth, the real truth behind their breakup. Cheryl had come to that realization after their time in the garden. Being so close to Toni again was making her resolve crumble.

As Cheryl laid in bed that night, her mind kept drifting to Toni. With a few simple pushes, the girl had gotten more words out of her than anyone else had in the last few months. It felt so right to be back in her presence. And for the first time since their breakup, Cheryl was excited to see what else Toni was going to do during this time. She knew at some point that they were going to have the difficult conversation about their breakup, but for now, Cheryl just wanted to start fresh and regain Toni’s trust again. It was going to be hard, but she was determined. She fell asleep that night with a faint smile still on her face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Progress for our favorite duo??? I know nothing about motorcycles! Just googled a bunch of things and that Harley Davidson one looked cool. Also, idk where I was going with that whole ghost scene. I was running out of what to fill in this chapter lol.
> 
> Heads up guys, my work schedule is hectic so the next update won't be until Friday/Saturday! Sorry for the wait!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flashback chapter of the beginning of Choni’s road trip to California.
> 
> There's also a few more parts of Toni’s past in here (Hint: These are important for things that will be revealed in later chapters).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Never have meetings with people on 4 different time zones in 3 different countries lol. I am so dead from work this week. So sorry this wasn't uploaded Friday. But enjoy!

_June 2018_

“I don’t see why we can’t take my car,” Cheryl whined as she watched Toni strap their duffle bags to her motorcycle.

“Babe,” Toni chuckled, “Our cross country trip is going to be a lot more fun on the back on my bike. Trust me.”

“But one duffle bag!” Cheryl exclaimed, “I didn’t pack everything that I wanted to.”

Toni turned around and looked at Cheryl who had her arms crossed and an adorable pout plastered on her face, “Cher,” she said as she tried to stifle her laughter, “There’s only so much that’ll fit on the luggage rack.”

“All the more reason we should just take my car.”

“You just want to pack all of your Louboutins.”

“It’s part of my look, TT! Cheryl Blossom without her heels is like Disney World without Mickey Mouse. You can’t have one without the other.”

Toni shook her head, “I have no idea what you’re trying to say, but you’ll survive with one pair of heels.”

Cheryl huffed in annoyance, her arms still crossed over her chest.

“Besides,” Toni continued, “You’ll being wearing those new Doc Martens for most of the trip. Believe me, you don’t want to wear heels while we’re riding.”

“Fine,” Cheryl said finally relenting. She knew Toni was right, but she still hated that she couldn’t pack at least a week’s worth of outfits.

“Think of it this way,” Toni said as she went to encircle Cheryl in her arms, “You can do all the shopping you want on our trip. Add a little more grunge to your wardrobe?” She pecked Cheryl’s pout away, hoping her girlfriend would see the brighter side of the situation.

“Ok, TT,” Cheryl smiled as she wrapped her arms around Toni’s neck, “I agree to your terms.” She leaned down to connect their lips again.

“Good,” Toni said pulling away from Cheryl’s plump lips.

“Are you also going to let me drive your motorcycle?”

“My baby?” Toni asked glancing at her motorcycle.

Cheryl quirked her eyebrows, “I beg your pardon?” She dropped her arms from around Toni’s neck, “Your baby?”

Toni looked back at Cheryl sheepishly, “Did I say baby? I totally meant, metal piece of garbage, because my baby is right in front of me.” She gave Cheryl a wide smile.

“Mmhmm,” Cheryl said placing her arms back around Toni’s neck, “That’s what I thought.”

“But yes, I’ll let you drive Diana. Just don’t wreck her or I might not be able to forgive you.”

Cheryl scoffed, “You named your motorcycle Diana? You really care that much about it?”

Cheryl had meant for it to sound more like a joke, but there was no response from Toni as the shorter girl was now looking down at her feet. She seemed to shrink a little from Cheryl’s embrace, her mind somewhere else.

“TT?” Cheryl said cautiously, “I didn’t mean to…”

“It’s ok, Cher,” Toni said, meeting Cheryl’s gaze again, “I, um, I named my bike after Diana Ross.”

“The singer?”

“Yeah, she was one of my mom’s favorite artists.”

They didn’t talk about Toni’s mother much. It was a very somber topic for Toni, and she would always close herself off to Cheryl. But she tried to get Toni to talk, or at least talk as much as she wanted to.

“We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to babe,” Cheryl said caressing Toni’s cheek. The gang member didn’t cry often, but she could see tears prickling at her girlfriend’s eyes.

“No, I want to,” Toni said taking a deep breath, “I want you to know the story behind it.”

Cheryl just nodded, giving Toni all the time she needed to continue.

“You know things weren’t always bad with my mom. We had some good times too, before she just upped and left me with my uncle.”

Cheryl was aware of this part of Toni’s past. She was always quick to defend that though her mother had left her at a young age, she wasn’t always a bad parent. Not until she had started using drugs as a way to cope raising a child on her own when her father passed.

“We used to have an old record player that my mom found in the dump one day,” Toni continued, “It wasn’t working, but she was able to fix it. She found a record in my grandpa’s trailer, _Where Did Our Love Go_ by the The Supremes. She’d play that record in our trailer from morning until night.” Toni smiled at the fond memories.

Cheryl smiled watching as Toni’s facial expressions turned from one of pain to happiness.

“We’d dance around our kitchen, belting out the words. And just for a few minutes, when that record would play, my mom let all her worries disappear. There was no pressure of being a single mother and having to raise a child on her own.”

Toni shrugged, “And that’s how I fell in love with Diana Ross’s voice. So when I got my bike, I knew right away I wanted to name it Diana. And partly an homage to the good memories I have of my mom.”

“Toni,” Cheryl said trying to keep her tears at bay.

“Oh, baby,” Toni said, wiping away the tears that were threatening to fall down Cheryl’s face, “I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

Cheryl chuckled, “I don’t know why I’m the one getting all emotional. This is about you.”

Toni smiled, “It just means you really care about me, Cher. And that you care about my life and the things and people that made me who I am today.”

“Thank you for sharing that story, TT,” Cheryl said as she rested her forehead against Toni’s, “I know it wasn’t easy.”

“We all have some dark parts of our past. I don’t even know where she is. I gave up wanting to know years ago. Who knows if she’s even alive.”

“Doesn’t some part of you hope that she is?” Cheryl asked.

Toni shrugged, “I don’t think it matters. I have everything I could ever want right here.” She tightened her hold around Cheryl.

Cheryl smiled at her, thinking how lucky she was to have Toni in her life. But she wished her girlfriend knew more about her family and had a better relationship with them. She’d met Toni’s grandfather and he was absolutely darling. Toni’s uncle on the other hand was a still a mystery to her, but she wasn’t in any rush to meet him. Cheryl could tell that Toni was more curious about her mother than she appeared to be, always brushing it off saying she didn’t care. But Cheryl knew that she did. That given the chance, Toni would do anything to have a relationship with her mother.

One of them should at least have some semblance of a relationship with their family. Of course, Cheryl had Nana Rose, but the woman was never fully aware of her surroundings and was forgetting more and more things. Cheryl’s relationship with her mother was absolutely horrid and she didn’t wish that on anyone else. And then there was Jason. He had been the only light in Cheryl’s life, until the accident a few years ago that took his and her father’s life. She wasn’t as upset about Clifford Blossom’s passing, because just like her mother, he was into some shady shit and showed her no ounce of love. But Jason was always there and when he left the world, she was alone again. That was until Toni came into her life. Or rather, crashed into her life.

The two had only been dating for a few months now, but there were three little words Cheryl was itching to say to her pink-haired girlfriend. She had fallen hard for the girl and was so enamored by her. But she knew now wasn’t the time to confess her love. She was waiting for that perfect moment and she was sure it would happen on their trip. So for now, she’d wait.

“You, Toni Topaz, are one brilliant human being,” Cheryl said as she connected their lips in a soft kiss.

“You about ready?” Toni said, releasing her arms from around Cheryl’s waist, “I’m hoping we can make it to Pittsburgh before the sun sets.”

“What cities are we staying in? You didn’t exactly tell me the plan, ma cherie.”

Toni chuckled, “Because there is no plan, Cher. We’re winging it.”

Cheryl thought that was the most absurd answer Toni could ever give her, “Winging it? There has to be at least part of a plan.”

“Babe, we have three months of summer. This is the ultimate adventure. Why bog it down with set plans when we can spontaneously find small towns and see what secrets lie there?”

“Riverdale has enough secrets for me,” Cheryl scoffed, “I don’t feel like venturing into the dark mysteries of others.”

“Not what I meant, but I’ll give you that. If you want a plan, it’s to get to California. Someway, somehow.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “Fine, I guess that’ll do. I just need to grab my Serpent jacket and we can be off!”

Toni watched as Cheryl disappeared into Thistlehouse, only to return a few moments later wearing her red Serpent jacket. She would never get over how hot Cheryl looked in that red leather. Scratch that. She’d never get over the fact that she was dating such an amazing person and that they were going to spend the next three months together, just the two of them. It hadn’t taken much for Toni to convince Cheryl to go on this road trip, but she did have to put up with a few of her girlfriend’s complaints, like the whole duffle bag situation, but besides that, the red-head didn’t need much convincing. She was more than happy to get away from Riverdale for a few months. Toni had never been cross country, but she couldn’t imagine going with anyone else. Cheryl Blossom was definitely one of a kind and Toni was so happy she was her girlfriend.

“Nana Rose is all good to go with the caretaker and I almost forgot about these,” Cheryl said as she pulled two IDs from her jacket pocket, “Reggie finished our fakes for the Viper room yesterday.”

“I guess that boy is useful for something,” Toni commented as she grabbed her ID from Cheryl, “Sally Jones? What kind of name is that?”

“I’d take Sally over Greer,” Cheryl said showing Toni her ID.

Toni laughed, “I don’t feel so bad about Sally anymore.”

“Well, I guess it’s just for this summer.”

“Don’t worry, babe. You will always be Cheryl Marjorie Blossom, HBIC of Riverdale, Bombshell, and hot as fuck.”

Cheryl smirked, “Tell me something I don’t know,” she kissed Toni’s lips quickly, “I’m ready when you are!”

“One last thing,” Toni said walking over to her duffle bag. She quickly grabbed something and hid it behind her back as she walked back to Cheryl.

“TT…” Cheryl said warily.

Before she could ask Toni what she was hiding, the shorter girl revealed what was behind her back. In Toni’s hands was a brand new open-faced motorcycle helmet. It was bright red, Cheryl’s signature color, with a black trim.

“You’ll need to wear your sunglasses with it, but now you won’t have to wear that old second-hand me down one I found in the trailer park,” Toni said holding the helmet out to Cheryl.

Cheryl took the helmet from Toni and took a better look at the helmet. Turning the helmet in her hands, she saw that Toni had gotten a little cherry decaled on the side. She felt those three words on the tip of her tongue again as she clutched the gift.

“TT,” Cheryl said, still admiring the helmet, “The old one would have been just fine.”

Toni shrugged, “I know, but the padding was starting to give way. Gotta make sure that beautiful head of yours is safe.”

Cheryl smiled, “I’m pretty sure the padding in the old helmet was perfectly intact.”

“No way for you to know, since I threw it out,” Toni laughed as she went to sit on her motorcycle, “Now get your cute butt over here so we can get going.”

“I’m always cute,” Cheryl remarked as she climbed on the back of Toni’s motorcycle.

“Oh, one more thing before I forget,” Toni said, reaching for her phone. She held it up so the camera was facing her and Cheryl.

Cheryl noticed Toni trying to take a selfie of them, so she wrapped her arms around her girlfriend and placed her chin on her shoulder making a goofy smile. Toni snapped the photo and went to her camera roll to review the picture. Cheryl was indeed very cute with her tongue sticking out. Toni quickly made it her phone wallpaper, deciding that it was one of her favorite photos that she’d ever taken. It was actually the first time they had taken a picture as a couple since they started dating a few months ago. But she’d never get tired of taking pictures of the beautiful girl whose arms were wrapped around her waist.

Toni turned her head to look at Cheryl and couldn’t stop the wide smile that formed on her face. She was about to go on a three month adventure with this girl. The girl who she was already hopelessly in love with. At some point during this trip, Toni was going to tell Cheryl how much she loved her and hoped the red-head reciprocate. From the way Cheryl was looking at her, she didn’t doubt the feeling was mutual.

Toni put her helmet on and started up her bike, “Hope you’re ready for the ride of your life, Bombshell,” Toni yelled over the roaring of her bike, “We’re just getting started.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I’m going to be dropping a few hints here and there about Choni’s breakup, but Chapter 14 is where it all comes together. The next few flashback chapters are mostly how Choni began and what they were like when they were dating. You’re going to see a chapter from Toni’s POV following their breakup but it’ll be after Chapter 14 because it has some spoilers of why they broke up.
> 
> No idea when I’ll have the next chapter up but possibly Tuesday/Wednesday!


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jumping a few days ahead. They’ve been in quarantine for a week and a half now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let’s just assume everyone is also finishing schoolwork during this time or that they were all ahead. I didn’t feel like adding that part in haha. Not like we actually see them doing work on the show anyway. It’s all IMPLIED!
> 
> I would have uploaded this yesterday, but I was reading through it and decided to change a few things.

The next few days for the Riverdale crew flew by. Everyone tuned in to the news every so often to keep up to date on the latest COVID news, but they were stuck in quarantine until the foreseeable future. Cheryl and Toni were on better terms after their encounter in the garden. Cheryl had stopped being so closed off to Toni, but she still had a bit of her guard up. But Toni was willing to wait until Cheryl felt comfortable enough to actually have a real conversation about their breakup. For now, she was just happy the red-head didn’t have a look of murder in her eyes every time she walked into a room.

They both knew the entire house could feel the shift between them and everyone was happy that things had calmed down a bit. Everyone in their friend group had been huge supporters of Choni, the ship name that Kevin had so comically created, but when they had broken up, there was a weird divide amongst them. The Serpents were there to support Toni and help her pick up the pieces of a broken heart, not to mention keeping Cheryl away from her at school. The core four tried to help Cheryl after her breakup, but the HBIC shrugged them off and told them she didn’t need to be treated like one of their charity cases. So she spent most of her time alone, until she needed something. Despite Cheryl keeping everyone at an arm’s length, she knew her friends were still there to support her.

By the end of their first week of quarantine, they were running low on supplies. The gang had gone to get more provisions that weekend, with the exception of Cheryl and Toni. They weren’t too excited to be cramped in the backseat again with all of their purchases like last time, so they decided to stay behind. Cheryl made sure that Betty and Veronica had some healthy options on the shopping list. She couldn’t stand having Archie and Jughead dictate dinner with burgers and other junk food.

It was now Tuesday of the following week. Cheryl had spent most of the day reading some thriller she found on the bookshelves. Re-reading _The Art of War_ didn’t seem as appropriate since she was now on amicable terms with Toni. Right? They had agreed to somewhat of a truce and she found herself being more open with Toni than before. But there was still part of her that didn’t want to tell Toni the truth behind their breakup. She didn’t know how the pink-haired girl would respond, or even see that Cheryl was doing it out of love. But she’d never truly know how Toni felt if she didn’t muster up the courage and just tell her. Soon, she told herself. Just a few more days.

Cheryl was quickly becoming bored with her reading and decided to venture to the manor’s movie theater. One movie or two wouldn’t rot her brain too much. Veronica, Archie, Betty, and Jughead were hanging by the pool while Fangs and Sweet Pea had decided to play a basketball game of 1v1, with Kevin and Josie as stand in cheerleaders. She wasn’t quite sure where Toni was, but guessed she was probably still asleep, even though it was almost 11AM. Toni could sleep all day if she wanted to.

The home theater was a fairly sized room in the basement of the house just off the kitchen. The walls were a deep red color with accents of gold, giving the room an old Hollywood feel. A few movie posters adorned the sides of the walls showcasing old classics like Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Casa Blanca. There were two rows of seating facing a large white screen, the second level of seating slightly raised behind the first. A large lounge sofa was situated on the first row with two recliner chairs on either side of it and the second row with five other reclining chairs.

Cheryl found her way to the sofa at the front and spotted the remote; it was more like a small iPad. After sitting down, she toggled with the remote and heard the projector come to life behind her. She looked through all the streaming channels and decided on Disney+. Something a little uplifting would be good right about now. She chose Aladdin from the listing of movies and settled into the couch. As the movie played, she mindlessly hummed along, remembering when her and Toni used to have movie nights at Thistlehouse. Most of the time they watched a thriller or horror film, which had Toni covering her eyes the entire time. Gang member or not, Toni was always freaked out by horror films, even the not so scary ones like Frankenstein.

Before she knew it, the credits were rolling from the movie. Cheryl was feeling pretty comfortable on the couch and there wasn’t anything pressing she had to deal with, so she clicked through the movies again and landed on Hercules. She continued humming and singing through the movie until she was startled by a voice from behind her.

“Didn’t know you loved Disney movies that much,” Toni said from the back of the theater.

Cheryl jumped at Toni’s sudden presence, “Toni!”

Toni chuckled as she walked towards the couch Cheryl was lounging on, “Didn’t mean to startle you, Bombshell.”

“You didn’t,” Cheryl replied as she fixed her hair into a high messy bun, taking in Toni’s appearance. The shorter girl was in a baggy Riverdale hoodie and black leggings.

“Sure,” Toni said, standing by the couch awkwardly.

“You can sit,” Cheryl said, her eyes never leaving the screen, “I won’t bite.”

Toni nodded and sat down on the couch next to Cheryl, leaving a good amount of space between them – the couch was big enough for four people. It was quiet between them as they watched the movie play across the screen. In all honesty, Toni wasn’t paying an ounce of attention to the movie. She was fiddling with her fingers and peeking at Cheryl out of the corner of her eye. The red-head was too engrossed in the movie to even notice Toni’s antics. Forty minutes into the movie and Toni still wasn’t doing any better.

Ever since they had become more friendly towards one another, Toni found herself craving Cheryl’s presence. She wanted to be around her ex-girlfriend all the time, even if Cheryl wasn’t paying any attention to her. At one point during the week when the group was having breakfast in the kitchen, she made Sweet Pea move so she could sit next to Cheryl. He hadn’t been too eager to move, especially since he was right in front of the pancakes, but Toni ended up yanking him off his chair and onto the floor. She chalked it up to wanting to be closer to the pancakes, but everyone knew she just wanted to sit next to a certain red-head. Cheryl didn’t seem to mind and gave everyone a stern look when they kept staring at the two.

Now here she was, in a room alone with Cheryl after being quarantined for a week and a half. They still hadn’t had their talk yet, but Toni could tell Cheryl was going to crack any minute now, which was the other reason she wanted to continue being around her. The more time the pair spent together, the more it felt like the old them. They used to be so comfortable with one another and could talk about anything and everything. Toni was making it her mission during this damn quarantine to get back to that old state between them. One way or another.

“I’ll be right back,” Toni said standing from the couch.

Cheryl simply hummed her response, her eyes still glued to the screen.

A few minutes later, Toni returned with a white fluffy blanket and a large bowl. Cheryl looked to Toni and eyed her suspiciously.

“What do we have here?” Cheryl asked, sitting up a little on the couch.

Toni handed Cheryl the blanket, “I, uh, saw you shiver awhile ago. Thought you might be cold.”

Cheryl took the blanket from Toni and draped it over her legs. She had been cold, dressed in a pair of black tight shorts and a plain white t-shirt. Leave it to Toni to notice those little things.

“And I made some popcorn,” Toni said, sitting a little closer to Cheryl so they could share the bowl, “Can’t have a movie without snacks.”

“Touché.”

They fell back into silence as the movie continued to play. Cheryl mindlessly reached her hand into the popcorn bowl and brought a handful of the salty snack to her mouth. As she was chewing she could taste something a little more sweet. She looked at the popcorn in her hand and noticed there were some darker pieces amongst the light coloring of the popcorn.

“Is this chocolate?” Cheryl asked as she looked at Toni.

“Yeah,” Toni said, not looking away from the screen, “I know you like little bits of dark chocolate with your popcorn. Never really understood it.” She popped a few pieces of popcorn into her mouth.

Cheryl was speechless. She didn’t think Toni remembered how she liked her popcorn. They would always have separate bowls during their movie nights at Thistlehouse because Toni didn’t like the combination of salty and sweet in one bite. But now here she was, eating out of the same bowl as Cheryl and eating the snack she once hated.

Toni finally looked away from the screen noticing Cheryl was staring at her, “What?”

“I didn’t think you remembered,” Cheryl said quietly.

“I kind of got hooked on the combo after…”

“After we broke up,” Cheryl finished.

Toni just nodded and went back to looking at the screen, Cheryl doing the same. It was the first time they had acknowledged their breakup since the beginning of quarantine. Toni wished they would just shut off the screen and have a full blown conversation, but she didn’t even know if she was prepared for that talk. And she knew Cheryl needed more time. So they continued munching on the popcorn and watching as Meg began singing on the screen.

_“No chance no way I won't say it, no no_

_(You swoon you sigh why deny it oh oh)_

_It's too cliche I won't say I'm in love”_

As the song continued to play, both girls reached for another handful of popcorn, their hands brushing against one another’s. They both snapped their heads up and looked at each other, not moving their hands from the bowl. Cheryl was thankful for the dim lighting that hid the slight blush of her cheeks. She never understood how Toni could easily pull these reactions from her. It felt a tad ridiculous to her that such a small gesture had her heart fluttering and her arms covered in small goosebumps. Cheryl quickly removed her hand and placed it in her lap as she stared back at the screen. Toni cleared her throat and set the bowl on the ground, hoping it would keep them from touching hands again.

A few more minutes of silence passed and Cheryl left the room to use the bathroom, only to return and sit so close to Toni that their shoulders were now barely touching. Toni froze from how close Cheryl was and she tried to calm her breathing. She should have left the bowl of popcorn between them as a barrier, because she was internally screaming from…excitement? Nervousness? Anxiety? No idea. This felt like their first date all over again. All Toni wanted to do was take Cheryl’s hand in hers and hold it for the rest of the movie, but she refrained from doing such a thing. They still had so much to figure out and Toni was getting more and more confused by the red-head. But she didn’t make any inclination to move away from Cheryl either.

By the end of the movie, Cheryl was purposefully leaning against Toni. Toni was sure her heart was going to come barreling out of her chest from how fast it was beating. There was still ten minutes left of the movie, but Toni had stopped paying attention. She was now full on staring at Cheryl, not caring whether or not the red-head noticed. The dim light from the screen illuminated Cheryl’s face and Toni, as usual, was captivated by her beauty. Cheryl wasn’t in her full glam, but nonetheless, she was beautiful in Toni’s eyes with her light makeup and her hair in a messy bun.

“Take a picture, TT,” Cheryl smirked, still looking at the screen, “It’ll last longer.”

Toni hadn’t heard that nickname since their breakup. It was a name reserved for Cheryl’s use and hers alone. Veronica had used it once and Toni had to keep Cheryl from murdering the poor girl. She could still remember the first time Cheryl used the nickname, when she had been invited to Thistlehouse for that weird sleepover with the other Vixens. The nickname had nonchalantly rolled off of Cheryl’s tongue, which had surprised Toni. She was used to Topaz or even Tiny from Sweet Pea and Fangs, but she guessed TT worked since her name was Toni Topaz. But as Cheryl continued to call her that, she realized it showed a side of Cheryl that didn’t fit with her usual façade she had around others. It was a more vulnerable side specifically meant for Toni, and her alone. So the nickname stuck and Toni loved to hear it more than all the other pet names Cheryl had for her. It was a special name no one else could claim.

Toni’s eyes shifted back to the screen once the comment left Cheryl’s mouth, “Sorry, Bombshell, don’t have my camera on me.”

“Shame,” Cheryl responded. She turned her head to look at Toni

“Now who’s staring?” Toni chuckled.

Cheryl didn’t say anything and continued looking at the pink-haired girl. Toni met her gaze, the movie now forgotten in the background. They just stared at one another, taking in each other’s features. Toni’s eyes flickered down to Cheryl’s lips for the slightest of moments, not going unnoticed by Cheryl. The amount of times that Toni had imagined this exact moment following their breakup was more than she was willing to admit. Her eyes continued to flicker between Cheryl’s eyes and her lips, those soft, plump lips that haunted Toni’s thoughts and dreams.

Toni watched as Cheryl slowly began leaning in towards her, the red-head’s gaze dropping to the her lips. Toni was back to internally screaming. She was frozen in place, not sure what to do. She waited for Cheryl to make the first move. As their lips were about to touch, Toni closed her eyes, trying to keep her excitement from boiling over.

“Oh Hercules!” Someone shouted from the back of the theater.

“Aww, it’s the end,” another person said.

Toni’s eyes snapped open, barely catching Cheryl drawing back so fast like she had been burned by something. The red-head shifted to the other side of the couch, leaving them in the same position when Toni had first entered the theater. She looked to the back of the theater and saw Sweet Pea, Fangs, Kevin, and Josie making their way to the front.

_Damn them._

“Greetings, chums,” Cheryl said sarcastically. She was both furious and thankful that the group had interrupted her moment with Toni. She wasn’t sure what had come over her, but the need to kiss Toni was just so strong.

Fangs was the first to make his way to the couch the two were sitting on and flopped right in the middle of them, “Oooo popcorn!”

Kevin sat on the other side of Cheryl, reaching over her to the bowl of popcorn Fangs had picked up from the floor. Sweet Pea and Josie were sitting behind them in the second row of seats.

“Hey, share!” Sweet Pea said, leaning across the back of the couch. Fangs handed him the bowl, “Why the hell is there chocolate in here? That’s gross.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes at the comment and stood from the couch.

“You’re not staying, Cheryl?” Kevin asked as he shifted closer to Fangs.

“No, I don’t think I need to keep ruining my brain with these dumb movies. Some fresh air will do me well.”

Kevin shrugged his shoulders and grabbed the remote to the projector from Fangs grasp, looking through the movie selection.

“Yeah, I think some fresh air would be good,” Toni mused as she also stood up.

“Don’t move, Topaz,” Cheryl said barely acknowledging her presence, “I want to be alone and I think I’ve had enough of your company.”

Toni stayed silent, a little hurt by Cheryl’s words. The girl had done a complete 180 and was back to being closed off. Toni was just starting to crack away at Cheryl’s walls again and getting her back to her true self. She was even more mad at her other friends for interrupting them. Toni sat back down and watched as Cheryl left the theater.

“Lilo and Stitch!” Sweet Pea yelled from the back as the movie tile flew across the screen.

* * *

Cheryl found herself back in the Lodge garden, hoping to clear her head and sort out her feelings. What happened in the theater could not happen again. It was a momentary lapse in her judgement and she needed to stop Toni from getting under her skin. She had no idea why Toni was having this effect on her. Just a few days ago she was doing fine, albeit wallowing in heartbreak alone, but at least Toni was kept at an arm’s length.

Everything was all wrong. Cheryl knew that, but she couldn’t go back and change the past. They were never supposed to breakup. They were fucking endgame! She wasn’t willing to start anything again with Toni until the girl knew everything that had happened and why their breakup was so necessary. It wasn’t going to be fair to Toni if she had given into her desires and kissed her without being completely honest with her.

But surely now Cheryl could tell Toni everything? She was finally eighteen and had the last of her father’s lawyer-y dumb sanctions lifted. There wasn’t anything holding her back now from telling Toni the truth, except for the pink-haired girl herself. Cheryl was absolutely terrified of how Toni would react to the truth. She’d probably think Cheryl’s reason for breaking them up was the dumbest decision that could have been made. Not to mention, Toni would probably have gone off and did something stupid like beating up the real person responsible for their breakup. But then there was the other side of Toni that Cheryl absolutely loved. The selfless, caring girl that put so many other’s needs before her own, which had ultimately given Cheryl the push to go through with the breakup. Toni would never do anything for herself.

Cheryl was sitting on the same bench in the garden, her legs pulled up to her chest as she stared out at the flowers. She needed to keep her distance from Toni until she was ready to tell her the truth. But her desire to be in her ex’s company was getting harder and harder to ignore. Toni made her feel safe and just understood her like no one else. She missed having someone in her corner and rooting for her no matter what was going on. She craved Toni. But would Toni want to be around her once the truth made its way to the light? Maybe, just maybe. Cheryl had to hope so. It was the only thing she could hold onto right now.

“I thought I’d find you here,” Toni said as she came to stand in front of Cheryl.

The red-head had heard her footsteps, but had chosen to ignore them, hoping the girl would just leave her alone.

“You found me,” Cheryl said, not meeting Toni’s gaze, “Now go away. I said I wanted to be alone.”

Toni didn’t move. She crossed her arms and continued looking at Cheryl, waiting for her to say something else.

“What do you want!” Cheryl said, raising her head to look at Toni.

“I wanted to make sure you were ok and talk about what happened back there. Sorry Sweet Pea and Fangs crashed our moment.”

“There was no moment. Forget it. It should have never gotten that far anyway.”

“Cheryl,” Toni said softly, “Talk to me, please. I can see something’s wrong.”

“Not now, Toni!” Cheryl snapped, “I told you, I wanted to be left alone!”

Toni was trying to keep her cool, but she was slowly starting to lose her patience. This was turning into a never-ending carousel and she wanted off the fucking ride.

“So when is a good time for you?” Toni said, matching Cheryl’s tone, “Because we keep coming right back to this damn conversation over and over again. I’m getting sick and tired of it. I’ve literally been waiting months for you to talk to me again.”

“I can’t,” Cheryl said, trying to keep her tears from falling, “You don’t understand.”

“Then help me understand!”

“Not now, Toni!” Cheryl said, her breath becoming ragged.

Toni immediately sat down next to Cheryl, noticing the signs of a panic attack coming on, “Shit, I’m sorry Cheryl. Just breathe. Breathe.”

“Just, leave me alone!” Cheryl quickly stood from the bench and started running back towards the house.

“Cheryl!” Toni yelled after her, “Cheryl!”

Toni watched as Cheryl sprinted back to the house, no doubt going to lock herself in her room. She’d fucked up. After everything Cheryl had been through during her life, her parent’s abuse, her brother’s accident, conversion therapy, and Nick St. Clair, Toni ended up yelling at her. The only other time that Toni had yelled at Cheryl was during their breakup. Besides that, she never raised her voice at the red-head, not seeing the point and knowing Cheryl had been through enough. No matter how much Toni wanted to know the truth, she was willing to wait until Cheryl was ready; until Cheryl was truly ready. Even though they were no longer together, Toni would wait forever for that girl.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All will be revealed in Chapter 14. Hang tight, we’re getting there! Sorry to keep dragging it on, but wanted to get a few more chapters in before reaching the climax of this story (wink wink). Also, I think the better word for Choni’s breakup is extortion? Whatever, you guys can be the judge of that when you read Chapter 14.
> 
> And yes, I get that Cheryl not talking to Toni is DUMBBBBBB but she's not very forthcoming about things in general and there's some fear about Cheryl pushing Toni away even more. She just wants to forget everything she's done, move on, and start fresh with Toni. But everyone knows that you have to be honest with one another before you can start anew. Just give her some time guys!
> 
> Next chapter will be up Saturday/Sunday!


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Choni’s first meeting. Well, kind of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost thought about deleting this, but I like writing the flashback chapters, so here you go.
> 
> I know we’re all familiar with Choni’s first (mostly first) encounter, but just wanted to add my take on what I think happened before and after those scenes. Some of the dialogue is the same as in episode 2x14 but I tried focusing more on their internal thoughts. Enjoy!

_March 2018_

Toni had no idea how she had found herself in this situation, but just behind her stall door was Cheryl Blossom. She wasn’t one to eavesdrop, but Cheryl wasn’t being quiet about it either. It must have been that need for the red-head to be the gossip queen of Riverdale High, keep her subjects compliant with all the dirty secrets she knew about them. Toni slowly opened the door to her stall as Cheryl was finishing up her call.

“Enjoy your couples-only weekend,” Cheryl said chirpily, “Kisses to all. Bye!”

Toni walked to the sink and started washing her hands, surprised that the red-head hadn’t even glanced her way, “Did you just tell Jughead that Archie and Betty kissed?”

“Yes,” Cheryl answered, looking at her appearance in the mirror, “So, what if I did?”

Toni stood to look at Cheryl adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder, “Did you at least have a reason?”

Cheryl turned to face Toni, plastering on a fake smile, “Oh, that’s right. You’re new here.”

Cheryl may be the HBIC of Riverdale, but she was one of the most gorgeous girls that Toni had ever laid eyes on, even if she slightly towered over her in those ridiculously sexy red heels. There were multiple times that Toni found herself drawn to the red-head ever since transferring to Riverdale. Sweet Pea and Fangs had caught her staring one time, leading them to continuously tease her about having a crush on the Ice Queen. But it was a harmless little crush and besides, it’s not like Cheryl was even gay…right? On the other hand, Toni’s gaydar was always flying off the charts when she was around Cheryl, but maybe it was just malfunctioning.

“Hi!” Cheryl said in that same chirpy voice, “I’m Cheryl Blossom, a.k.a. Cheryl Bombshell, which means I need no reason.” She gave Toni a quick up down, a slight scowl forming on her face. “I simply am. Feel free to tremble.” Cheryl looked back to the mirror

Toni raised her eyebrows. She was trembling, but fear was not the reason.

_Damn, Cheryl was hot when she got sassy._

“I have a better idea,” Toni responded as she stepped into Cheryl’s space.

Cheryl turned to face the short girl again, annoyed that she was in her personal space.

“Why don’t you tell me what’s bothering you because clearly,” she placed her hand on Cheryl’s arm, “You’re in a lot of pain.”

Cheryl looked at the hand on her arm and a weird electric feeling spread through her body. Sure she had noticed how incredibly stunning the pink-haired girl was at the drag race, and then again when they had squared off in the hallways when the Serpents had transferred to Riverdale, but her mother’s incessant voice was the only thing she could think of in that moment.

“Get your sapphic Serpent hands off my body!” Cheryl yelled as she slapped Toni’s hand away and bolted for the door.

Toni smirked as she heard the bathroom door close. She was beginning to enjoy these new nicknames that Cheryl always seemed to make up on the spot.

_And there goes her gaydar again. That thing must be broken._

Eventually, Toni was going to get the red-head to open up to her. It might take some time, but she was going to keep trying. Cheryl didn’t fool her no matter the façade she put on for everyone else. This girl was beyond fascinating and Toni was yearning to learn about the real Cheryl Blossom.

* * *

Toni had been waiting outside the Bijou for Fangs for a while now, but the boy was nowhere to be seen. She checked the time on her phone, noting the movie was going to start in ten minutes. As she looked at her phone a text message from Fangs appeared.

 ** _Fangs_ : **Hey Tiny. Can’t make movie. Met a guy.

 ** _Toni_ : **Of course you did. Thanks for standing me up jerk.

 ** _Fangs_ : **You know you love me.

 ** _Toni:_ **Debatable. 

After sending off her text to Fangs, Toni slipped her phone back in her jacket pocket and walked through the front door of the theater. Even though Fangs couldn’t make it, she’d wanted to see _Love, Simon_ as soon as it had been announced. She was a sucker for rom-coms, especially if it involved the gays, but she wouldn’t admit that to anyone. As she made her way inside the theater, she noticed a certain red-head at the snack bar. There were only two red-headed kids in Riverdale and Toni knew that long curly hair didn’t belong to Archie Andrews.

“Let me guess, a little cherry cola for Cheryl Bombshell.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, already aware of whose annoying voice that belonged to, “Oh my God,” she turned to look at Toni, “What do you want? And why do you keep stalking me?”

Toni leaned against the snack bar, “I’m not. I was supposed to meet Fangs, but he bailed on me.” She waited for a snide comment from Cheryl, expecting something about her actually having friends or what not, but nothing was said.

“Are you ok?” Toni asked, noticing Cheryl fiddling with the drink in her hands.

“I’m alone at the movies,” Cheryl answered, “And trying to keep away from my tyrant of a mother. So no, I’m really not.”

“That bad, huh?” Toni said as Cheryl’s facial expressions turned dull, “Well, I was going to grab a seat alone, unless you want some company. No pressure though.”

Cheryl was surprised by Toni’s offer. She’d been nothing but mean to this girl. But here she was, showing her some semblance of…friendship? Kindness? It confused Cheryl, but also helped a little to fill the massive void in her heart. What did she have to lose? If things didn’t go her way, she could just cut this girl out like she did with everyone else. Little did she know that Toni would not go that easily.

* * *

The movie was everything that Cheryl had thought it would be. It resonated with her, but the outcome was much better than her current situation. Simon’s mother accepted him for who he was and who he loved. The same couldn’t be said for Cheryl and her relationship with her mother. She was suffocating at home and couldn’t be herself around anyone. No one would care anyway. Except maybe Toni? This girl had appeared out of nowhere and been a constant annoyance to her, but was also the only person who seemed to ask how she was doing.

They were sharing a tub of popcorn with dark chocolate pieces scattered throughout. Toni had laughed at the absurd mixture, which earned her a glare from Cheryl, but nonetheless, she went along with the red-head’s choice of snack. As the movie played, Toni held the tub of popcorn between the two of them, occasionally reaching her hand in to grab a few pieces of popcorn, making sure to avoid the chocolate. During the scene when Simon was waiting for his secret crush on the Ferris wheel, Toni went to grab some more popcorn, but was met with a warm soft hand instead. She looked to her right and saw Cheryl looking at her with blown eyes.

“Sorry,” Toni mouthed, withdrawing her hand from the tub. She handed the popcorn to Cheryl who took it and quickly averted her eyes to the screen.

Cheryl was full on blushing, thankful that Toni had looked away. She didn’t think Toni could see the redness on her cheeks given the small amount of light in the theater, but she was happy that Toni had looked away. That same electricity from their encounter in the Riverdale bathroom shot through her body when their hands brushed against one another. It warmed her up and a weird feeling began forming in her chest. She didn’t even think it was possible for her to feel like that again. Not since Heather. Cheryl tried to clear those thoughts from her head, but they wouldn’t disappear. She spent the rest of the movie in her own little world, trying to suppress those feelings she was taught to ignore her entire life.

* * *

The two girls had ended up at Pop’s after the movie, Toni complaining that she was dying for some real food. Cheryl didn’t really want to go at first, but then remembered that going home was going to be worse. She was not prepared to run into one her mother’s gentleman callers. The girls ordered some food and milkshakes and silently ate, stealing the occasional glance at one another. As one of the waitresses came to pick up their empty plates, Toni turned to look at Cheryl who was swirling the straw in her shake.

“You know,” Toni said placing her arms on the counter, “You may think you have mastered the art of silent tears, but I saw you crying during that movie, Cheryl.”

Cheryl took a deep breath, “I never cry in movies. My life is tragic enough.”

Toni nodded.

“But when Simon’s mother knew that he was holding in a secret, I just…”

Toni’s gaze softened, hoping Cheryl knew that she was in a safe place to tell her whatever was on her mind.

“Everyone thinks I’m this loveless person,” Cheryl said, a few single tears pricking at her eyes, “But I’m not. I loved someone, who loved me. And my mother destroyed it.”

“Jason?” Toni asked, “I heard you guys were close.”

Cheryl shook her head, “Not, JJ. Her name was…Heather. And I loved her. But my mother caught us in the same bed one night. She said I was deviant.”

Toni knew Cheryl was hiding something, but being a lesbian was definitely not at the top of her list. She was expecting Cheryl to say she killed someone and buried the body under her house; it was still a possibility though. Toni had to keep herself from pumping her fist in the air at Cheryl’s confession. Now was definitely not the time to pat herself on the back. She was just grateful that her gaydar wasn’t broken.

She wasn’t unaccustomed to people coming out to her, but Cheryl was different. The red-head had bottled up her feelings towards girls and no one in her family had supported her. Toni knew what that was like and if she could be that support system for Cheryl, she damn well was going to be. No one deserved to feel that hate from people, especially not their own family. There was nothing wrong with being true to yourself and loving whoever the hell you wanted. Screw Mrs. Blossom and her antiquated thinking.

Toni did her best to hide her slight surprise at Cheryl’s confession and the anger she felt for the girl before saying something, “Cheryl, I’m so sorry. But you have to know your mother’s wrong. You’re not loveless. You’re not deviant, okay,” she grabbed Cheryl’s hand.

Cheryl once again felt that electricity course through her as she met Toni’s gaze with watery eyes.

“You’re sensational,” Toni finished giving her a small smile.

Cheryl couldn’t help but try and smile through her tears. Who was Toni Topaz and why did she care so damn much? She didn’t even want to tell the Scooby-Doo gang about her darkest secret. But here she was, spilling her guts to…a stranger? Could Cheryl even call Toni a stranger anymore? She didn’t know if she could trust this girl, but something about Toni was so alluring and intoxicating. Cheryl was becoming more and more drawn to the pink-haired girl, a safe haven in the dark depths that was Riverdale.

Toni looked down at their linked hands and gave Cheryl’s a slight squeeze, “There’s nothing wrong with who you are, Cheryl. I’m sorry your mother doesn’t appreciate that and support you. But please know you’re not alone in this. I’m here and I’m not planning on leaving you alone.”

Cheryl wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt, her other hand still clasped with Toni’s, “I don’t think I could get rid of you even if I tried,” she chuckled slightly.

Toni grinned, “You can try, Bombshell, but I’m not going anywhere.”

"You know, I’ve never told anyone before. My brother knew, but that was it.”

“I get how hard it is to keep that bottled up. My uncle hated that I dated girls.”

Cheryl’s interest peaked at Toni’s confession. Sure she had a feeling that Toni was gay, but she didn’t just want to assume.

Toni noticed her reaction and laughed, “You didn’t think I was straight did you?”

Cheryl shrugged her shoulders and took a sip of her milkshake, “No, but didn’t want to just assume you were a raging lesbian like me.”

Toni couldn’t stop laughing, “I’ve never heard someone call themselves that. And I’m bi, but obviously more into girls,” she emphasized her point by blatantly checking Cheryl out.

“Cool your jets, Romeo,” Cheryl said rolling her eyes.

Toni released Cheryl’s hand, seeing the anxious look that covered Cheryl’s face before it quickly dissipated. She held out that hand to Cheryl, “Give me your phone.”

Cheryl gave her a confused look, “Why?”

“So I can steal it and pawn it for money, duh,” Toni joked.

Cheryl was unimpressed, but handed over her phone. The shorter girl typed away for a few seconds before handing the phone back to Cheryl. She looked at her phone screen and saw that Toni had added her contact information.

“Really,” Cheryl said, eyeing Toni, “Hot Serpent Girl?”

“I mean it’s true,” Toni said laughing.

“You’re annoying, you know that.”

“Whatever you say, Red Hot.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “And cocky. Stop flirting with me. Just because I told you I was gay does not mean I’m attracted to you.” Lies. Lies. Lies. She was very much attracted to Toni, but the girl didn’t need to know that.

Toni smirked, “Bet I can change your mind. I can rock your world, Cheryl Blossom.”

“And that is my cue to leave,” Cheryl said standing from her chair.

“I’m kidding, I’m kidding,” Toni said reaching for Cheryl’s hand again, “Friends?”

“I guess I can live with that,” Cheryl said, trying to keep her calm. One touch from Toni and Cheryl seemed to turn into a pile of putty.

_Damn her._

"Cheryl,” Toni said seriously, standing up next to her, “If you ever need someone to talk to, I’m available. I’m in your corner now. So blow up my phone whenever you feel like it.”

Cheryl smiled, “Thanks, Toni. I’ll see you at school on Monday.”

Toni nodded and watched as Cheryl walked out of Pop’s to her red Chevy Impala. She sat back down at the counter and finished her milkshake, scrolling through her Instagram feed. As she was taking the last sip of her drink, her phone buzzed with a new text message.

 ** _Unknown_ :** Thank you for listening. Even if you are a little flirt.

 _ **Toni**_ : Always here to help, Bombshell. Can’t say that I’ll be able to control the flirting though. You’re too damn hot!

 _ **Bombshell**_ : Goodnight Topaz!

Toni smiled. This was going to be a very interesting friendship between her and the red-head, but she was so looking forward to seeing where it would lead. She was getting closer and closer to figuring out the enigma that was Cheryl Blossom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cried during Love, Simon, not gonna lie. Haven’t watched Love, Victor yet, but looking forward to it.
> 
> This was really just a fluffy chapter. Next chapter will be up Tuesday/Wednesday. I really need to just finish writing the rest of this story, but work is kicking my ASSSSS.
> 
> Thanks everyone for the kudos and comments! Sorry for not being better at responding!


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cheryl apologizes to Toni and everyone parties. Fun and drunkenness ensues.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jumping a few days ahead because I don’t think a lot of time has passed haha.

It had been two days since Cheryl had left Toni alone in the garden. They had been avoiding each other since then, everyone very much aware of the weird vibe between them yet again. Cheryl knew that it was childish for her to run off like that, but she still needed to figure out some things on her own before she told Toni the whole story. She mostly wanted to make sure she told Toni in a way that didn’t sound like word vomit. There were parts that Cheryl needed Toni to know more about, specifically the extortion part of it. The part that ultimately was to blame for their breakup. She made a choice. A choice that Toni wouldn’t have been able to clearly make, so Cheryl made it for her. Was it selfish for her to do? Maybe. But Toni wouldn’t have agreed to it. And so here they were. Broken up and obviously still head over heels for one another.

The morning had been uneventful, with everyone breaking off to go do their own thing. Toni had been eating breakfast with Sweet Pea and Fangs when Cheryl made her way to do her yoga workout. Neither girl spared a glance at the other. Everyone else spent the day lounging around the pool while Kevin and Josie were setting things up for later that night. They had decided to throw a little party to help relieve the stress of being cooped up in the house. The amount of booze that had been bought was overflowing on the kitchen counter. Most of it would probably be gone by the end of the night. Riverdale kids knew how to party.

After Cheryl had taken a shower and prepared for the day, she went to see what Kevin and Josie were up to. Kevin was currently placing some fairy lights up on the terrace roof as Josie helped guide him.

“That looks fancy,” Cheryl said as she sat down on one of the cushioned chairs.

“It’ll give us some extra light that isn’t from the fire,” Josie said, “We found them in the pool house. Also found some random tiki torches that we’ll light in the yard.”

Cheryl nodded as she watched Kevin string the lights.

“You want to help Cheryl?” Kevin asked, still focused on his task.

“I’ll supervise,” Cheryl responded as she checked her nails.

“Ok…” Josie said, handing another string of lights to Kevin, “Well then do you want to tell us what’s going on with you and Toni?”

Cheryl’s head snapped up at Josie’s question, “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Denial,” Kevin singsonged.

“Say that again and you’ll be hanging from that roof,” Cheryl barked.

Josie rolled her eyes, “Come on Cher, you guys have been hanging out a lot the past few days. Not to mention the way you guys kept looking at each other. Heart eyes and all. Also, pretty sure we walked in on a private moment between you guys in the theater.”

Cheryl crossed her arms and leaned into the chair, “There’s nothing to tell.”

“So you weren’t almost about to kiss?” Kevin asked.

“It’s almost like you want me to push you off that ladder, Keller.”

“Ok, enough of the violence talk,” Josie said, sitting across from Cheryl, “I just want to make sure my best friend is ok. I know things were really rough for you after the breakup.”

Cheryl relaxed a bit and looked a little defeated, “I don’t know, Josie. Ever since Toni walked into this house I’ve had so many conflicting feelings.”

“Because you still care about her.”

“I don’t know what I feel. There’s so much that hasn’t been said and I don’t know if I have the strength to tell her. What if she hates me even more?”

Josie reached her hand out and rested it on Cheryl’s knee, “No one knows what really happened between you guys. We all thought you guys were endgame. And you probably still are. But you guys need to sit down and have a serious talk. Stop assuming what Toni’s feelings are going to be. You won’t know until you talk to her.”

Cheryl knew Josie was right. She was too caught up in thinking about how Toni would react and automatically assuming the worst. But after over a year and a half of dating the pink-haired girl, she should have known that Toni’s responses were always the opposite of what Cheryl had thought they’d be. It was Cheryl putting up another defense mechanism and thinking the worst. Instead of taking the leap and facing Toni head on, she was being a coward and forgoing the conversation they should have had some time ago.

“No better time than the present,” Kevin added, “We’ll be here for awhile anyway. Might as well get it out of the way.”

“Thank you for your words of wisdom, Kev,” Cheryl said sarcastically, “I’ll leave you two to finish up these…decorations.” She left the two without another word, deciding to go find Toni. She might not be ready to spill everything, but she at least owed the girl an apology for bolting the other day.

Cheryl searched the house, but couldn’t find Toni anywhere. She wasn’t playing video games with Sweet Pea and Fangs or watching movies in the theater. The motorcycle was back in the garage, so she hadn’t gone out. She checked the garden next, but there was still no sign of Toni. Cheryl made her way back to the house and to Toni’s room, knocking on the door, but no response came. She was about to give up and go back to Josie and Kevin when she heard muffled music. Cheryl followed the sounds and came to a closed door by Archie and Veronica’s room. She grabbed the door knob and opened it.

There stood Toni Topaz swaying to some music on her phone. She had set up a makeshift developing room in what appeared to be an office space, similar to the one back in Thistlehouse. It reminded Cheryl of the first time she had walked in on Toni developing film and learning all about the art. Toni was in her element, that carefree state that Cheryl found so attractive.

Toni immediately stopped dancing as she watched Cheryl step into the room and close the door behind her. She wasn’t annoyed that Cheryl had found her, but she continued with her task, paying no mind to Cheryl. Toni could feel Cheryl’s eyes on the back of her head, but still ignored her. It might have seemed petty, but Toni wasn’t in the mood to have another meaningless conversation with the red-head.

“The Supremes?” Cheryl asked quietly, listening to the song that way playing.

Toni didn’t respond, mixing her film solution in her developing tank.

“Toni,” Cheryl said, walking closer to her, “Please, I came to apologize.”

Toni stopped what she was doing and turned her music down, facing Cheryl with her arms crossed. Cheryl didn’t apologize often and when she did, she meant it. Toni took a deep breath and ran her hand through her hair, “There’s no need for you to apologize, Cher. I’m the one who should be apologizing. I shouldn’t have blown up like that.”

Cheryl shrugged, “You had every right to. After everything I’ve done.”

“Cher, just stop,” Toni said softly, “I know this is hard for both of us and I need to be patient. You told me you’d tell me eventually, and I need to respect that. You’ll tell me when you’re ready. And I’ll be here to listen.”

“I’m almost there, TT,” Cheryl said the last part quietly, not sure if Toni would want to hear that old nickname again, “Just a little longer.”

“I’d wait forever for you Cheryl Blossom,” Toni said, meeting Cheryl’s gaze, “Always have, always will.”

Cheryl was at a loss for words. Why was Toni Topaz such a damn good person? She didn’t deserve her. She wanted to reach out and wrap her arms around Toni, just to feel close to the girl again and melt into those familiar arms. But she stayed planted where she was, unsure of how Toni would take her actions. She was being confusing enough. There was no need for her to make things more complicated.

“You developing your film from last week?” Cheryl said quickly changing the subject.

“Already did,” Toni said pointing to a strip of film that was hanging on a piece of string by the wall, “And they came out pretty good. Can’t wait to add them to my portfolio.”

“I don’t look horrible in them do I?”

Toni laughed, “You’ve never taken a bad picture, Cheryl. But feel free to destroy any that don’t meet your standards.”

Cheryl walked over to the film that was hanging up, “I trust you,” she said, knowing Toni would never display a horrible picture of her. Toni was the one person who knew her better than anyone else, “What are you working on now?”

“I found some old film at the bottom of my bag. Not sure what’s on it, though.”

“Sounds interesting.”

“Could just be random photos that I took for the Blue and Gold, so nothing too exciting about that.”

Cheryl nodded, Toni coming to stand next to her. She turned to look at the shorter girl who was staring back at her.

“What?” Cheryl asked.

Toni smiled, “Nothing. I’m just not used to spending this much time around you. You’ve kind of ignored me like the plague since the beginning of senior year.”

Cheryl looked down on the floor wringing her hands, feeling slightly ashamed of her past actions, “I know. It..it was just too hard to be around you.”

Toni reached out and held Cheryl’s hands in hers, “I get that.”

Cheryl met her eyes.

“But I’m hoping that we’re working on getting back to friends at least?” Toni questioned.

“Friends,” Cheryl tested the word on her tongue and then smiled, “Friends, TT.”

They smiled at one another, finally establishing the new _friendship_ status between them. Friendship was the last thing on Toni’s mind, but she didn’t want to press her luck any further. If they were meant to be together again, it would all work out. They needed to take things slow. Before Toni could say anything else, the door of the office burst open, Fangs and Kevin crashing through the room lip locked.

“Fangs, what the hell!” Toni yelled, letting go of Cheryl’s hands.

Fangs detached himself from Kevin and looked at Toni and Cheryl, “Didn’t know this room was already taken. Guess we weren’t the only ones trying to sneak off for a little rendezvous.”

Toni rolled her eyes and pointed to the door, “Go find somewhere else to hook up.”

“Have fun you two,” Fangs smirked as he dragged a waving Kevin away.

What was it with people and interrupting them when they were having a moment? Damn everyone in this household.

“I should go,” Cheryl said walking towards the door, “See you tonight?”

“You bet,” Toni said giving Cheryl another smile as the girl left the room.

After the week they’d had together, Toni thought she had messed things up after trying to push Cheryl. One step forward, two steps back. But they were making progress. It felt just like the beginning of their relationship had, Cheryl closed off and not willing to let anyone in and Toni being the pain in the ass she was and not leaving her alone. The walls around Cheryl were slowly coming back down. Toni just needed to make sure not to back her into a corner again and give her any reason to run in the other direction. Patience, she told herself again. It was going to be hard for her to do, but Cheryl would come around. She always did.

Toni turned her music back on to finish developing the film she had found. She began unraveling it from the developer tank and removed the excess water, holding the film up to the light to see what images had been captured. She was expecting to see pictures taken at Riverdale or ones from random Serpent things, but what she found was even more surprising. The roll was full of photos she didn’t remember taking. Most of them were pictures of her and friends. Some were of just her. There was only one person who knew how to use her camera and have the photos turn out as well as her own. Cheryl. She remembered seeing Cheryl messing with her camera a few times, but didn’t think she had actually taken any. Toni couldn’t wait to get the film fully developed and turned into actual photos. She wondered why she had never found this roll until now. Maybe it was a sign from the world. Letting her know things were looking up.

* * *

The party was in full swing that night. Everyone had decided to dress up a little for the party seeing as they wouldn’t get another chance to wear them out to any clubs in the city. After eating a copious amount of food and washing it all down with alcohol, everyone was happily buzzed. Some of them were a little more past that point, like Cheryl. Music played over the Bluetooth speakers outside as a few of them chatted amongst themselves and others were in the middle of a beer pong tournament. Kevin and Josie were sitting on one of the couches, with Betty and Veronica sharing the other. Toni and Cheryl were sitting on individual seats across from one another. They had been stealing glances at one another all night. Unbeknownst to the two girls, everyone could tell they were on better terms tonight than earlier in the day. Kevin had opened his big mouth to everyone and told them that he and Fangs had walked in on the two having another moment. Nothing was secret in this household.

With the alcohol flowing through her system, Cheryl was starting to relax. She may have been a little too flirty with Toni after dinner had concluded, but she was blaming it on the alcohol. She was trying to be subtle, but was failing miserably. Sober Cheryl was never this forward. The sexual tension between them was palpable and it was getting harder and harder for them to keep their distance from one another. But they were friends now, right? So what did it matter.

“Never have I ever!” Kevin exclaimed, taking a sip of his beer.

“What are we twelve?” Cheryl asked. She was very much tipsy, but kept on drinking. Not like she was doing anything important the next day.

“Do you have a better idea?” Betty asked.

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “Fine.”

Josie, Veronica, Betty, Cheryl, and Toni all agreed to play with Kevin as Fangs, Sweet Pea, Jughead, and Archie were too consumed with their beer pong tournament to leave.

“Never have I ever been tied up during sex,” Kevin said.

“Seriously,” Veronica stated as she took a sip, “That’s what you start with, Kev?”

Kevin shrugged, “Just wanted to know who in this friend group was kinkier.”

Cheryl stole a glance at Toni who was full on blushing and giving her a knowing look. She tried to take a sip of her drink discreetly, but everyone had seen her.

“Well, well, well,” Kevin laughed, “Miss Cheryl Blossom. Would never have guessed that.”

The group all turned to Toni who was avoiding their stares. They all burst out laughing, earning a scowl from Cheryl.

“Move on, you horndogs,” Cheryl chided.

“Ok, ok,” Josie said, still laughing, “Never have I ever hooked up with someone outside.”

Everyone in the group drank.

“You guys are some freaks,” Josie commented.

“My turn,” Veronica said, “Never have I ever hooked up at school.”

Cheryl made a face, “Are you lying to us?”

“Yeah,” Kevin added, “Pretty sure I saw you and Archie getting hot and heavy in the music room.”

Veronica rolled her eyes, “We’ve never hooked up at school. Just a lot of making out.”

Cheryl, Kevin, and Toni were the only ones who drank. The two girls giving each other another look. No one needed to know about their meetings in the dark room at Riverdale High.

“I’m feeling a lot of sexual tension between two certain people in this group right now,” Veronica said chugging the rest of her drink and looking between Cheryl and Toni.

Cheryl rolled her eyes and Toni focused on the drink in her hands.

“Betty, want to get more to drink?”

“Sure,” Betty said shrugging and following Veronica back to the kitchen.

“But we’re in the middle of a game!” Kevin yelled.

“Hey, Kev,” Josie said, “Do we have anymore chips?”

Kevin sat further back into the couch, “Should be over by the grill.”

Josie stood and gave Kevin a look, “Want to help me find them?”

“They’re right over there,” Kevin said pointing.

Josie didn’t say anything and kept giving Kevin a look, hoping he would get her point.

“Oh,” Kevin said, “Ooohhh. Um, yeah I’ll help you with that.” The two of them left leaving Toni and Cheryl alone.

“They’re not very subtle,” Toni said taking a sip of her beer.

“Mhmm,” Cheryl said downing her drink. She knew she needed to pace herself and beer would have been a better option, but here she was, finishing off her third cup of some vodka mixture. She was going to feel it in the morning.

“You feeling ok there, Cher,” Toni asked, a small grin forming on her face, “Haven’t seen you drink this much since that party we threw at Thistlehouse and you ended up dancing on the tables.”

“That was an epic night, TT,” Cheryl said giggling, “I’m all good,” her head swaying a bit to the music.

“If you say so, Bombshell. Just happy to see you chill a bit.”

"I can be chill,” Cheryl said incredulously.

Toni laughed, “Your definition of chill is very different from that of a normal person’s.”

“Normal is boring.”

“That it is, which is another reason why I lo-“ Toni quickly caught herself before she uttered those three familiar words.

Truth be told, she’d never fallen out of love with Cheryl. But since quarantine started, she found herself thinking more and more about them. About when they were a couple. When saying I love you on a regular basis was the norm. When she could hold Cheryl’s hand whenever she wanted or better yet, just hold her in her arms. To have her senses filled with that same sweet cherry perfume and be able to run her fingers through luscious locks of red hair. She missed it. She missed all of it. She missed them.

Had Toni almost said she loved her? Cheryl was blushing. She hoped Toni would think it was just the alcohol coursing through her, but Toni knew her better than anyone else. Of course she knew Cheryl was blushing. There wasn’t much you could get past her.

“I’ll go grab you some water,” Toni said getting up to go to the kitchen.

“I don’t want water,” Cheryl pouted.

Toni knew Cheryl was way past her limit, but that damn pout on her face was just so adorable. It made her weak in the knees and she’d give into anything the red-head wanted. But not right now. She needed to put something other than alcohol in her system.

“I’ll be right back,” Toni chuckled, “Don’t move.”

Cheryl mock saluted her and Toni disappeared into the kitchen, only to appear a few seconds later.

“Did you just teleport? You were gone one second and back again like, BOOM!”

Toni laughed and handed Cheryl the cup of water, “You’re officially cut off for the night, Cher.”

Cheryl took a few sips of the cold water, feeling it help cool her hot skin from the alcohol. Toni sat on the arm of the chair stroking Cheryl’s back, trying to get her to drink the entire cup. Slowly but surely Cheryl finished it, but Toni could still tell she was pretty drunk now. She was about to suggest Cheryl go to sleep when Veronica turned up the music on the speakers, Dua Lipa’s song _Don’t Start Now_ blaring through.

“I love this song!” Veronica shouted as she grabbed Archie from the beer pong table and started dancing with him. She had hit that point of drunkenness as well.

Cheryl stood up at lightning speed and pulled Toni to the yard where everyone else had joined in dancing. The next thing Toni knew, Cheryl was grinding against her. She didn’t know what to do, but she was definitely too sober for this.

_If you don't wanna see me dancing with somebody._

_If you wanna believe that anything could stop me._

Toni’s hands found their way to Cheryl’s hips as she followed the red-head’s movements to the music. Why did Cheryl have to look so damn sexy in that tight red dress? Her heart and mind were internally screaming at one another - one telling her to walk away and the other telling her to push Cheryl up against a wall and have her way with her.

_Don't show up, don't come out._

_Don't start caring about me now._

They continued swaying to the music, Toni’s hands moving up and down Cheryl’s sides. This is where they were supposed to be. Together. Cheryl turned to face Toni and wrapped her arms around the shorter girl’s neck, still moving to the music. Toni thought she was going to pass out from having their fronts pressed so closely together and their faces mere inches from each other. She could smell the alcohol on Cheryl’s breath, noticing that knowing look she was so accustomed to seeing when Cheryl got a little too drunk. Cheryl wasn’t much of a drinker, but when she made it past that point, she was a major flirt and horny as hell.

“Cher,” Toni said, their lips so close yet again.

“TT,” Cheryl whined, tightening her arms around Toni’s neck, “Kiss me.”

_Fuck…._

“Cher,” Toni said again, briefly closing her eyes, “We shouldn’t.”

“Why not,” Cheryl whispered, resting her forehead on Toni’s, “Don’t you want to.”

“You know I do, God, I want to so badly,” Toni squeezed Cheryl’s hips, “But now’s not the right time, ok?”

Cheryl nodded. Deep down she knew they still needed to have their talk, to put everything out there, but damn she missed the feeling of Toni’s lips on her own.

“How about we get to bed?” Toni asked, putting a little more space between them.

Cheryl’s eyebrows shot up at Toni’s question.

“No, no,” Toni said quickly chuckling, “Not what I meant. Let’s get you to bed. You’re going to have one hell of a headache tomorrow morning.”

“Ok, TT,” Cheryl said intertwining their hands together.

Toni led them back into the house, ignoring the whistles and whoops of their friends, flicking them all off. Did she wish they were sneaking into the house for something else? Sure. But she’d never take advantage of Cheryl in this state. She didn’t even want to kiss Cheryl when she was drunk. They both needed to be sober and in the right state of mind to do anything.

Cheryl opened the door to her room and clumsily removed her heels throwing them somewhere in the room. Toni helped guide her to the bed where she immediately face planted into the pillow. Toni tried her best to stifle her laughter at Cheryl’s actions. She thought about helping Cheryl change into something a little more comfortable, but felt a little awkward at undressing her ex-girlfriend. Of course they’d seen each other naked multiple times before, but this was different. They weren’t dating and Toni didn’t want to overstep. So she made sure Cheryl wasn’t suffocating herself with the pillow and pulled the sheets over the red-head’s body.

Toni sat on the edge of the bed and moved a few strands of hair from Cheryl’s face. She was the most gorgeous girl that Toni had ever laid eyes on and the girl who still had her heart. Ever since their breakup, she couldn’t bring herself to even look at another person. She knew that when Cheryl had called it quits between them, she was doing it for a good reason. Toni thought she had put most of the pieces together, but wanted to hear the full story from those red painted lips. She knew Cheryl was a good person. Some people may not have thought that, but Cheryl was a fighter. She fought for people she deeply cared about and would put their needs above her own, even if it caused her pain. Cheryl was selfless in that aspect.

“I’m sorry, TT,” Cheryl mumbled, her eyes closed, “For everything.”

Toni ran her fingers through Cheryl’s hair, caressing her face, “I know, babe,” the pet name slipping from her lips effortlessly, “We’ll figure everything out…together.”

“Please don’t leave me,” Cheryl mumbled.

Toni’s heart broke a little at Cheryl’s statement, “I’m not going anywhere, Cher. Never again. We’ll talk when you’re sober,” she leaned down and kissed Cheryl’s forehead, those three words getting stuck in her throat again.

Cheryl didn’t say anything else, finally passing out from the alcohol. Toni stroked her red-hair one last time before leaving her to sleep. As she walked towards the door, something red from Cheryl’s suitcase caught her eye. She didn’t want to invade the girl’s privacy, but there was something familiar about it. Toni reached for the red piece of clothing and noticed it was Cheryl’s Serpent jacket. She thought Cheryl had gotten rid of it, but the jacket was a lot more worn down than Toni remembered. It was obvious that Cheryl had continued to wear it even after she walked away from the Serpents. Another sign that Cheryl’s actions for their breakup still didn’t make sense. She was still holding on to part of their life that they had shared together.

Cheryl probably thought that Toni hated her for breaking things off, but she could never hate her. Her feelings for Cheryl had never gone away. She loved her too much and knew that Cheryl still felt the same. They’d find their way back to each other, one way or another.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song that I imagine Toni was listening to when she was developing her film was Baby Love by The Supremes. Would love to know if any of you guys listen to 50s/60s oldies music. It’s my favorite.
> 
> Next update will be Saturday/Sunday!


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cute little flashback chapter. And Choni’s first I love you???

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure if you guys have noticed yet, but all the flashbacks kind of tie into the previous chapter. For instance, Chapter 3, Toni was buying developer solution at Costco and Chapter 4 was all about the process of developing photos. Chapter 7, Toni checks out the motorcycle in the Lodge’s garage and takes photos of Cheryl and then in Chapter 8 you see Toni and Cheryl on her motorcycle and the first picture they take together as a couple. Thought I’d just give you guys some insight into what my writing process was like.
> 
> ANYWAYYYYYYY, enjoy this fluffy chapter. Sorry that it’s short!

_July 2018_

Toni and Cheryl had been in California for a few weeks now, just riding along the coast and staying in secluded cabins and cheap motels. They had driven through the Sierra Vista Scenic Byway and even taken a trip to Joshua Tree, where Toni had spent most of the time taking photos of Cheryl instead of enjoying the park itself. At one point, Toni attempted to teach Cheryl how to drive her motorcycle, but it led to a lot of complaining from the red-head and the bike almost shooting off the side of a cliff. Cheryl thought Toni had been furious with her, but the pink-haired girl just couldn’t stop laughing. In the end, Cheryl realized Toni was best suited to drive them around. She’d stick with her Chevy Impala back home.

They were currently in Los Angeles having the time of their lives and getting ready to go clubbing at the Viper room in West Hollywood. Cheryl was dressed in a red crop top and tight white jeans tucked into her Doc Martens. She finished her look with her red Serpent jacket and signature red lip, her hair curled to perfection. Toni had on ripped black skinny jeans and a mesh long sleeve top, her hair pulled up into a half up half down look with a few braided strands.

“You about ready, babe?” Toni asked as she pulled on her Serpent jacket.

“Ready, TT,” Cheryl said fluffing her hair one last time in the mirror of the bathroom, “Uber should be here in a few minutes.”

“Great,” Toni said sitting on the unmade bed in their motel room, “Damn, Bombshell, your ass looks smokin’ in those pants.”

Cheryl tossed her hair over her shoulder and planted her hands on her hips, “You’ve seen me wear these numerous times, TT.”

“And I’m always so turned on when you do,” Toni said seductively, “Maybe we should just skip the shows and spend the night in bed. The things I would do to you!”

Cheryl laughed, “You’re insatiable! We’ve literally spent the entire day in bed and the day before that.”

“I didn’t hear you complaining.”

“One night,” Cheryl said coming to stand in between Toni’s legs, “One night on the town and then you can have your way with me.”

“Promise,” Toni said wrapping her arms around Cheryl’s waist.

“Promise,” Cheryl said leaning down and connecting their lips.

It was meant to be a quick, innocent kiss, but Toni had deepened it immediately. Her girlfriend didn’t seem to object at all, allowing Toni to slide her tongue into her mouth with ease. Cheryl’s lips were a drug and Toni was completely obsessed with them, among other things. Toni’s hands slowly slid under Cheryl’s crop top and soon enough, Cheryl was laying right on top of her. Maybe they weren’t going to make it out of the room today and Toni was perfectly fine with that. As Toni went to remove the red Serpent jacket from her girlfriend, Cheryl’s phone dinged.

Cheryl pulled away and grabbed her phone from her back pocket.

“Noooo,” Toni whined trying to pull Cheryl back down on top of her, “Come bacckkk.”

“Uber’s here,” Cheryl said standing up and going to the mirror in the room, “Babe, you ruined my lipstick!”

“There’s a lot more I could ruin if you’d get your butt back over here,” Toni sassed as she sat up.

Cheryl finished re-applying her lipstick and put the tube in her jacket pocket. She wouldn’t be caught dead without it on her, “You’re more than welcome to stay in bed, TT, but I’m going to go out and have some fun. Would love it if you joined.”

“Finnneee,” Toni said standing from the bed, “But you owe me sex after this.”

“Whatever you want babe,” Cheryl said pecking Toni’s lips and heading outside the room, “Let’s move it, Cha-Cha.”

* * *

The ride to the Viper room took no time at all and they were soon standing in line to get inside. They handed the bouncer their fakes who didn’t even give them a second glance and waved them into the building. It was packed for Thursday night. Most of the shows took place on Saturday, but Toni had come across somewhat of an open mic night for new bands to showcase their songs. So here they were. They squeezed through the throng of people and ordered a beer each before finding a place in front of the small stage. The crowd around them cheered as the first band made their way on stage. Cheryl and Toni were standing next to each other, Toni’s arm around Cheryl’s waist as they moved to the music, occasionally sipping on their beers. Cheryl wasn’t one for rock and roll, but Toni loved it and she loved Toni. They hadn’t said it to each other yet, but Cheryl knew by the end of the night, those three words would be coming out of her mouth.

The first band played a few more songs before a short break, giving the next band time to prepare for their set.

“Want another beer?” Toni asked, taking Cheryl’s empty beer bottle.

“Sure,” Cheryl said kissing Toni’s cheek, “Thanks babe.”

Toni got them another round and made it back to Cheryl just as the new band had taken the stage. This one was a lot more lively than the one before and covered a few classic songs that had the crowd singing along. Cheryl even found herself singing to a familiar tune every now and then. By the end of the second group’s set, Toni and Cheryl were at a happy buzzed point.

“Baby, I’m going to find the restroom,” Toni said giving Cheryl’s hand a squeeze.

Cheryl hummed in response and continued dancing to whatever song was playing over the speakers, filling the silence as another band prepared for their set. Toni found the restroom with ease only having to push past two couples making out along the way. As she finished up and entered back into the main room, she went to grab another beer, knowing Cheryl only ever drank two. Her girlfriend wasn’t a huge fan of beer, but would have them with Toni occassionally.

Toni walked back to the spot where she had left Cheryl, but her girlfriend was no longer there. She looked around for another few seconds when she heard the sound of glass shattering in the corner. Through the mass of people she caught a glimpse of red hair and that bright red Serpent jacket she knew fairly well. As she walked closer towards the commotion she found Cheryl holding a guy in an arm lock, his front slammed up against the wall. By the way her girlfriend was twisting the man’s arm behind his back, it looked pretty painful. She must have learned that move from Sweet Pea or Fangs, because Toni had never taught her that. But damn, Cheryl looked so hot.

“I’m going to say this one more time,” Cheryl growled as she twisted the guy’s arm more, “Slower, so your tiny brain can actually understand. Walk away, before you get hurt!” She pulled the guy away from the wall and pushed him back into the crowd that had gathered around.

He turned around to look at Cheryl, rage in his eyes. Toni took the couple of steps to get to her girlfriend, standing between her and the unknown man, her drink forgotten on some random table.

“My girlfriend just told you to walk away, sir” Toni said sizing the man up. She may be small, but she could hold her own in a fight, “I’d listen to her if I was you.”

The guy took one look at Toni and back to Cheryl, realizing he didn’t want to get into a fight with a pair of girls. He started walking away, but not before muttering, “Fucking dykes.”

“Why don’t you come over here and say that to my face!” Toni shouted as she tried to lunge for the guy. Cheryl’s arms shot out to keep Toni in her place, not wanting her to start a fight in a foreign place.

The guy disappeared back into the crowd, everyone else going back to what they had been doing before the small commotion.

“We should probably get out of here,” Cheryl said, noticing a few security guards making their way towards them.

“Way ahead of you, babe,” Toni said taking out her phone and ordering them an Uber, “Especially since our names aren’t Sally and Greer and we’re not 23.”

Cheryl laughed as Toni took her hand and led them out into the cool LA air to wait for their Uber.

* * *

Cheryl didn’t know where Toni was taking them, but she didn’t care. The girl could take her to the middle of nowhere and she’d be happy. Forty minutes later and the Uber was pulling up to Venice Beach Boardwalk. Toni was the first one out, thanking the driver and pulling Cheryl with her. It was sometime past midnight, but they weren’t the only ones taking a stroll around the streets. There was always something to do in Los Angeles. They walked hand in hand towards the beach, the light from the streets and surrounding stores becoming more distant as they made it closer to the ocean. Toni removed her shoes and socks, letting her toes sink into the cool sand, Cheryl doing the same. It was fairly dark out as they walked along the beach, giggling and making small talk. They continued walking along the water, the only light coming from the moon and stars above them.

“You were so hot back there, babe,” Toni said proudly, “I just wish you would have let me punch that dude’s lights out.”

“And have you in the back of a squad car for assaulting someone? I think not.”

“We’re in a gang, Cher. We would have gotten away with it.”

“Maybe in Riverdale, but we’re not there right now.”

“Well either way, I’m proud of you for putting him in his place, baby,” Toni said as she stopped walking. She set her boots down on the ground and wrapped her arms around Cheryl’s waist admiring how beautiful she was in the moonlight.

Cheryl shrugged, “He was getting handsy and he shouldn’t be invading a person’s space like that.”

“Who taught you that move by the way. Because I sure as hell didn’t. I usually just go for the groin.”

Cheryl laughed, “Always so elegant, TT. Archery isn’t the only skill that I acquired during my younger days. Mother made sure Jason and I were trained in the art of Chito-ryu.”

“Cheeto what?” Toni asked.

“Chito-ryu. It’s a form of karate founded by Dr. Chitose. His philosophy was that karate moves should mostly include throws and joint immobilization techniques.”

“So more of a self-defense style rather than an offensive one?”

“Precisely.”

“Wow,” Toni said kissing Cheryl’s cheek, “Full of surprises, Blossom.”

Cheryl smiled, “Always.”

Toni felt those three words bubbling up in her chest as she continued looking into Cheryl’s soft, brown eyes. She wasn’t going to hesitate this time. This was the moment she had been waiting over a month for. The moment where it was just her and Cheryl, where no one could interrupt them. Cheryl Blossom had quickly become one of the most important people in her life and her only family. She was not going to let this girl get away. Toni took a deep breath and smiled.

“Cheryl – “

“I love you,” Cheryl interrupted.

Toni’s mouth slightly hung open at Cheryl’s confession, “What?”

“I love you,” Cheryl repeated, “I’ve been wanting to say it ever since we started this road trip.”

Toni began laughing, seeing a scowl cross Cheryl’s face.

“There was no need for you to laugh at me if you didn’t feel the same way,” Cheryl said, a little hurt.

“What? No, no, baby,” Toni said holding Cheryl’s face between her hands, “I just wanted to be the first one to say it. But I guess you beat me to it. I am so incredibly in love with you, Cheryl Marjorie Blossom.”

Cheryl was grinning from ear to ear and responded by connecting their lips. This wasn’t their first kiss but it felt like it – gentle yet passionate. But there was a whole other side to this kiss tonight. It embodied every ounce of feeling and love for one another. A kiss that was beyond anything either of them had felt before. Toni pulled away slightly to look into Cheryl’s eyes again, seeing nothing but love in them.

“This isn’t a dream, right?” Cheryl asked.

“No, Cher,” Toni confirmed, “This is most definitely not a dream. I love you. And I’m not going anywhere. You’re not getting rid of me anytime soon.”

“Good,” Cheryl said smiling and reconnecting their lips.

It’s as if time had stopped right there. Nothing mattered in that moment except them. Their lives may not be perfect, but this moment was. They stood like that for a good few minutes, relishing in each other’s company under the stars of California. Never wanting to let each other go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not gonna lie, Venice beach at night is kind of creepy and COOOLLLDDDDD. I feel like I’m getting worse and worse at endings lol. Chapter 13 is going to give you guys somewhat of another hint as to Choni’s breakup??? But then it’ll all make sense in Chapter 14 (and hoping none of you guys think it’s too much of a letdown?).
> 
> My work schedule is kind of hectic this coming week but I will do my best to have Chapter 13 up Tuesday/Wednesday! I really want to get you guys to 14 so there’s no more secrecy about the breakup lol.
> 
> P.S. So happy for Vanessa on her announcement yesterday!!!


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cheryl deals with the events after the party and we learn who was truly behind Choni’s breakup.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys will finally know the person responsible for the breakup. There are also some other hints that I decided to just drop in this chapter. Everything will make sense in the next one though. This is a filler chapter, but I needed it in here as a good transition chapter.

Cheryl woke up with a pounding headache, the taste of alcohol still on her tongue. She knew she had drank too much last night, but she was willing to live with the consequences. It’s not like she indulged in alcohol on a daily basis. Her body felt heavy and she was so uncomfortable. She threw the comforter off her body and noticed she still had her dress on. The dress made her look incredibly sexy, but damn it was so tight.

She took her time sitting up in bed and checked her reflection in the mirror on the wall. Her makeup was smeared and her hair was sticking out in multiple places. She looked a mess. Groaning, Cheryl slowly stood up and made her way to the bathroom to take a much needed shower. As she prepared herself for the day, she thought back to the events of last night. Had she really told Toni to just kiss her? Yes, yes she did. But Toni had also almost said I love you, right? Or was that just what she wanted to hear in her drunken state. Either way, she hadn’t been fair to Toni. She couldn’t just keep confusing the girl with her own feelings. But as they say, your drunk-self is your truest-self.

In that moment, Cheryl made the decision that she was going to talk to Toni today. To finally get everything out into the open. It was time. Her feelings for Toni were still there; they had never left. She wanted to be with Toni again and was hoping the other girl wanted the same. But even if she didn’t, Toni deserved the truth behind their breakup and why it had to happen. She had missed out on a lot in Toni’s life the past few months and Cheryl just wanted to know everything. What she was doing in her spare time when she wasn’t at school? Did she and the boys had fixed up that old motorcycle they had found sitting in the trailer park last summer? And most importantly, did Toni still truly love her? Cheryl hoped after all was said and done, Toni still did.

It had only been a little over two weeks since their quarantine had started, but it’d been seven months without the other. Cheryl couldn’t count the number of times she almost cornered Toni in the hallways of Riverdale High to tell her everything – the truth behind their breakup that had been eating at her for months. But there were certain circumstances that kept her from doing that. Or a specific person, Penelope Blossom. Her devil of a mother that couldn’t let her be happy for one second of her life. But no more. She was finally eighteen and had full access to her trust fund. Her mother’s hold on her was officially gone, but the damage to her relationship with Toni had already been done.

First on Cheryl’s list to do that morning, or rather afternoon seeing as she had slept most of the morning, was to find some aspirin. She couldn’t talk to Toni if she couldn’t stop her splitting headache. She put on a pair of black leggings and Toni’s hoodie, not caring if the other girl made a comment about it; it was comfortable and brought some kind of peace to Cheryl’s mind. Ignoring everyone on her way to the kitchen, she finally found a bottle of aspirin in a cabinet and quickly took some, chugging an entire glass of water with it. She made herself a large cup of coffee and grabbed some fruit from the fridge. Cheryl didn’t really want to eat anything, but she knew it’d help her feel better. She sat down at the kitchen island waiting for the aspirin to kick in as she snacked on her food.

“Well, you look like shit,” Betty said going to the fridge.

Cheryl held up her middle finger to Betty as she fixed her hair into a messy bun.

“And so chipper this morning too.”

“I don’t need your judgement right now, Cousin Betty,” Cheryl answered as she bit into some melon.

Betty raised her hands in surrender and left Cheryl alone in the kitchen.

Cheryl had a few moments of peace and quiet until Sweet Pea and Fangs came crashing into the kitchen. They ignored her presence as they scavenged the pantry for food.

“You cheated,” Sweet Pea said as he threw some food at Fangs who caught it.

“I did not,” Fangs responded, “Just because you’re a freaking giant doesn’t mean you’re actually good at basketball.”

“You fouled me multiple times, man.”

Fangs rolled his eyes, “Don’t be such a cry baby you sore loser.”

Sweet Pea reached over and tried to put Fangs in a headlock, who easily sidestepped his attack. Soon enough the two of them were rough housing around the kitchen knocking things off the counter and onto the floor.

“Will you two idiots cut it out!” Cheryl said annoyed.

“My bad, Red,” Fangs said punching Sweet Pea in the shoulder, “Didn’t see you there.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “Of course you didn’t.”

The two boys gathered a few snacks and were on their way outside when Cheryl spoke up again.

“Have you guys seen Toni?”

“She went out for a ride,” Fangs said, unsure if he should tell Cheryl.

“A ride?”

“Um, yeah,” Fangs continued, “She found a motorcycle in the garage and Veronica let her take it for a spin.”

Cheryl nodded and went back to her bowl of fruit, taking a large gulp of coffee.

Sweet Pea and Fangs shared a look.

“Cheryl,” Fangs said, taking a seat next to her, “We need to talk.”

“About what?”

“Toni,” Sweet Pea said sternly, still standing by the door leading outside.

Cheryl turned to look at them with a face of indignation, “What about her?” she asked, crossing her arms.

“We’ve noticed that you guys have been getting closer lately,” Fangs said.

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “So what! It’s not any of your business.”

Sweet Pea quickly made his way over to Cheryl so he was towering over her, “None of our business!”

“Sweets,” Fangs said jumping up to put himself between Sweet Pea and Cheryl, “Chill out.”

“It is our business when the girl our best friend was madly in love with shatters her heart into a million fucking pieces!” Sweet Pea all but yelled at Cheryl.

Cheryl stood from her seat glaring at Sweet Pea, “You don’t even know what happened!”

“And neither does Toni! No one does, because as usual, all Cheryl Blossom cares about is herself.”

“Sweets, calm down,” Fangs said keeping him from getting in Cheryl’s face, “This isn’t helping.”

“That’s not true,” Cheryl said furiously.

Sweet Pea shoved Fangs away from him, “It doesn’t matter! Just stay away from Toni. She’s been through enough already. She doesn’t need you causing her anymore pain.” Sweet Pea turned on his heel and stormed out the door.

 _The nerve of that guy!_ Cheryl thought.

Fangs raked his hand through his hair before turning to face Cheryl, “I’m sorry, Cheryl. He’s just a bit fire up.”

“He needs to pull it together!” Cheryl said incredulously, “He has no right to come at me like that. Especially since he doesn’t know the first thing about my relationship with Toni.”

“We’re just concerned,” Fangs said calmly, “Toni’s basically our sister.”

“I was too at one point,” Cheryl mumbled.

“You’re still part of our family, Cheryl,” Fangs said softly, “Serpent or not, we still care about you. And so does Sweet Pea, even though he’s a little hot-headed right now. He still hasn’t gotten over what happened after Christmas with Toni.”

“Wait, what?” Cheryl asked confused.

“You know,” Fangs said, “With her mom passing away.”

Cheryl’s face drained of color. This wasn’t supposed to be happening. After everything that she had done. How could this be happening?

Fangs noticed the change in Cheryl’s facial expression and knew he had immediately fucked up, “Oh shit, I thought she told you.”

“She didn’t say anything,” Cheryl said quietly.

“Please don’t tell her I told you,” Fangs said quickly, “I just thought you knew.”

“I have to go,” Cheryl said walking back to her room.

“Cheryl?” Fangs called out to her, “Cheryl!”

* * *

Toni slowly pulled into a parking spot at Santa Monica Pier, dropping the kickstand of the motorcycle with her foot and turning off the engine. She got off the bike and removed the black, full-faced helmet and let her hair fall loosely around her shoulders. After setting the helmet on the seat, she looked around. There were a few other vehicles in the lot and people meandering along the beach. Due to the current situation, there weren’t that many people out, which she was grateful for.

She was thankful that Veronica had let her take Hiram Lodge’s motorcycle for a ride, stating something about it needing to be used for more than it’s pretty looks. It had been beyond anything Toni had ever ridden before. She wished she could just take the bike back with her to Riverdale, seeing as it would just be kept locked up in that extravagant garage. Despite not being able to do that, Toni was definitely planning on riding it around California for the duration of this quarantine. All she was missing was her favorite passenger.

It was a fairly warm day with the sun casting rays of light through the few clouds that scattered the sky. Toni was running a little hot with having her Serpent jacket on, but she wouldn’t be caught in public without it. A Serpent never sheds its skin. She unzipped the front part of her jacket, letting the wind help to cool her down, and sat sideways on the motorcycle. Toni wasn’t quite sure why she had decided on going to Santa Monica beach, but she felt drawn there. She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out what looked like a crumpled piece of paper. As she unfolded it though, she couldn’t help the sad smile from forming on her face.

In her hands was the picture she had taken of Cheryl at this exact place almost two years ago. Though the picture was very worn down and wrinkled, she could still make out Cheryl’s beautiful face, laughing at something in the distance. And the most important part that Toni could still see was the love that filled Cheryl’s eyes. Toni could have sworn that she saw that look return the other night during their party, albeit from a very drunk Cheryl. But nevertheless, she was sure it was there.

Toni started thinking about everything that had happened within the last week. She and Cheryl had almost kissed not once, but twice. And God did she want to kiss those plump lips again. But it wouldn’t be fair to either of them if the truth behind their breakup wasn’t put out in the open. Toni was trying her best to wait for Cheryl to tell her the truth, but with each passing day, she was getting more and more tired. She had promised Cheryl that she would wait, but how long was it going to take? Seven months had already passed and Toni still didn’t fully know why they had broken up. All she knew was that Cheryl’s reasoning behind their breakup was so far from the truth. She couldn’t quite pinpoint how she knew, but she suspected that someone else was the true culprit.

She was so lost in thought that she didn’t notice another motorcycle parking right next to her until the guy had cut his engine and was talking directly at her.

“Sorry, what?” Toni asked, looking up at the guy.

“Your bike,” the guy found himself saying again, “Harley Davidson Duo-Glide?”

“Uh, yeah. It’s my friend’s. I’m just borrowing it for a bit.”

“Well, your friend has good taste,” the guy said, checking out the motorcycle.

Toni hummed in agreement and went back to looking at Cheryl’s picture. Damn did she miss her. Fuck this whole complicated situation they were currently in.

“Cute girl,” the guy said.

Toni slightly jumped noticing the guy was now standing right next to her. She guessed he was trying to get a closer look at the bike, but she wasn’t too happy about him being in her personal space. Any other time she would have been annoyed, but she was too busy thinking about her relationship, or lack thereof, with Cheryl to care about anything else. To hell with personal boundaries.

The guy looked like he was waiting for Toni to respond, but she remained quiet.

“That your girlfriend?” The guy pressed.

“Yeah,” Toni said absentmindedly.

She had agreed with the guy so quickly that her brain hadn’t caught her slip up before it was too late. But honestly, Toni wasn’t bothered by it. She hadn’t gotten over introducing Cheryl to people as her girlfriend and couldn’t even bring herself to say ex-girlfriend. There was a reason why Toni kept Cheryl’s picture with her at all time. She was still very much in love with the red-head.

“You’re a lucky girl,” the guy added, noticing Toni’s mood change.

“Thanks,” she responded in a monotonous tone.

The guy took a few steps back from Toni and leaned against his own motorcycle, crossing his arms over his chest and facing her, “Something happen between you guys?”

_Damn, even this stranger could tell something was up._

Toni laughed, “Is it that obvious?”

The guy shrugged his shoulders, “I’d just assume you’d be with her instead of at the pier alone staring at her picture.”

“Touché,” Toni responded.

“You want to talk about it? I’m a good listener?”

Toni looked at him warily, “Technically, you’re a stranger. I don’t know if I should be spilling my personal life to you.”

The guy held out his hand for Toni to shake, “Munroe Moore, but my friends call me Mad Dog.”

Toni shook his hand, “Toni.”

“See,” Mad Dog said smiling, “Now we’re not strangers. You can think of me as an objective third party.”

Toni laughed. Maybe it would be good to get someone else’s point of view about her situation. Her friends were way too involved and would definitely be a little more biased.

“So tell me Toni, what’s going on with you and this girl?”

Toni didn’t know where to begin. Her and Cheryl’s story was a long one and their ending, if you could even really call it that, still hadn’t been fully explained.

“Cliff notes version, things are currently rocky between us. There’s this massive secret she’s keeping from me and I’m not sure how to approach her about it.”

Mad Dog nodded in understanding as he continued listening.

Toni took a deep breath, “My _girlfriend_ , has been through so much already and I just don’t want to push her. But I don’t know how much longer I can wait. My strength to hold out is wearing on me. I’ve waited for months now and I still feel like I’ll never know.”

“I have a simple question for you then,” Mad Dog said, “Do you love her?”

Toni was a little surprised at his question. She didn’t know what to expect, but she was hoping he’d have some encouraging words or advice to just be patient or even hit her with the cliché saying of good things come to those who wait. But no. He’d asked her a simple question about loving Cheryl and she knew her answer as soon as he had asked.

“More than anyone else in the world.”

“Well, there’s your answer,” Mad Dog said cheerily like he had solved a worldly problem.

Toni looked at him confused, “I don’t think you actually gave me any advice here, bud.”

Mad Dog laughed, “I said I was a good listener, never that I could give you good advice.”

“Oh, well great,” Toni said sarcastically, “And here I thought you’d be my Gandhi and lay some inspiring shit on me.”

“Sorry, fresh out inspiring shit,” Mad Dog joked, “But I can tell you that love isn’t easy. It’s not supposed to be. But the fact that you love her means you’re willing to stay and wait. You might think your resolve is crumbling and what not, but I believe if you didn’t love her, you’d have let this secret tear you apart.”

Unbeknownst to Mad Dog, Toni and Cheryl weren’t actually still together. But maybe he was onto something. The secret had broken them up, but they were slowly starting to make their way back to one another. And maybe it was because they had never fallen out of love with one another. Toni could only hope.

“But is love enough?” Toni found herself asking.

“Who’s to say it isn’t?” Mad Dog countered.

Toni nodded in agreement.

A beat passed until Mad Dog’s phone started to ring. He grabbed his phone out of his pant pocket and looked at the caller ID, “It’s my friends. I should probably go and find them now.”

“Oh for sure,” Toni said standing up from her motorcycle, “Thanks for listening to me and my girl problems.”

Mad Dog laughed and stood up from his bike, “Anytime Toni. Hope everything works out with you and your girl.”

“You and me both,” Toni said smiling.

She watched Mad Dog walk towards the pier and waved him a final goodbye before walking towards the water. Toni walked along the beach for a few minutes before sitting down on the sand and stretching out her legs. She knew she’d have sand in places it shouldn’t be, but she didn’t care.

Her talk with Mad Dog had made her feel better about approaching the subject of the breakup, but she was still worried about how Cheryl would react. She didn’t want to push the girl, but ultimately, Toni knew it had to be done. As soon as she got back to the house, she was going to sit Cheryl down and have that long overdue conversation. For the next thirty minutes, Toni watched the waves crash against the shoreline, trying to come up with the best way to approach Cheryl once she got back to the house.

* * *

Cheryl laid on her bed staring at the ceiling. This is what she was afraid of, missing out on these important parts of Toni’s life. Not to mention the steps she had taken to make sure Toni had time with her mother. Had all her actions been for naught since her mother ended up passing away? But without her stepping in, Toni wouldn’t have had any time with her mother. Wasn’t the time she had spent all worth it? Or the bigger question, would Toni have thought it was worth it? Give up one love to have another? Cheryl really needed to find Toni now. It was time for the truth, the whole truth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so there’s that. Choni's breakup had something to do with Penelope (I mean are you really surprised), trust fund, and Toni’s mother? I’ll explain everything in the next chapter.
> 
> My work schedule is killing me. I stayed up late yesterday finishing work and then wanted to get this chapter finished for you guys. I would have posted this yesterday, but decided to add that scene with Toni at Santa Monica last minute. So if it looks like it was quickly put together, that's why (and I did this at like 2AM). Not sure if it messed up the flow with the ending but I really don't care lol. I'm also loopy as hell rn so whatever.
> 
> Next update will be Saturday/Sunday (most likely Sunday) depending on when I can look over chapter 14. Sorry guys!


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The truth of Choni’s breakup.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY!!!! The WHOLE reason behind Choni’s breakup! It’s all led up to this! Hope this isn’t too confusing. Also, please read the end notes because I might have to change my update schedule a bit!

_August 2019_

Cheryl had dragged Veronica and Betty to the mall to shop for new outfits for their senior year. Veronica and Betty didn’t really want to go, but Cheryl had convinced them that they needed to make a statement when they returned to Riverdale High. Something about making sure the underclassmen never forgot who the true rulers of the school were. By the middle of their shopping spree, Veronica and Betty were actually having fun, despite Cheryl making them go into every single store.

“How does Toni deal with your shopping addiction,” Betty said looking at all the bags Cheryl was carrying.

“It’s not an addiction, Cousin Betty,” Cheryl said rolling her eyes, “And besides, she won’t say anything after I gift her with these new combat boots,” Cheryl held up one of the bags.

“Where is she anyway?” Veronica asked, “I thought she was coming with us.”

“King Hobo called an emergency Serpent meeting,” Cheryl said walking into another store, the two other girls following behind her.

Betty rolled her eyes, “Jughead,” she emphasized, “Needed to talk to everyone about their patrols or something. There seems to be a new gang in town.”

“New gang?” Veronica questioned, “Didn’t know there were any others besides the Ghoulies and those dumb Gargoyle kids.”

“No idea,” Betty said perusing through the clothes, “Could be nothing, but Juggie is just upping patrols until they know more.”

“Nevertheless,” Cheryl said holding up a few items, “I told TT I’d buy her a new wardrobe. It’s the least I can do after your boyfriend has been working her to death.”

Betty rolled her eyes at Cheryl’s comment.

“I’m going to try on a few things,” Cheryl stated as she gave her shopping bags to Veronica and made her way to the dressing room.

Cheryl closed the door behind her and hung up the clothes she had picked out. Before she could try on the first piece of clothing her phone rang. She was half expecting it to be Toni because she hadn’t heard from her girlfriend since breakfast. It was now past 2PM. Cheryl grabbed her phone from her small, red Dolce and Gabbana backpack and rolled her eyes at the caller ID.

_The Devil_

Cheryl was going to let it go to voicemail, but she always found some enjoyment in telling her mother off every once in awhile. Ever since getting emancipated from her mother at the end of sophomore year, her and Nana Blossom had been living in peace at Thistlehouse. She didn’t quite know where her mother had escaped to after being booted from the Blossom Estate, but she didn’t care. Her mother was more concerned with fulfilling her own selfish needs than caring for her family.

Cheryl answered the call and brought the phone to her ear, “What do you want, viper!”

“Cheryl, dear,” Penelope said in a faux sweet voice, “Always so graceful with your words.”

“I’m busy,” Cheryl said annoyed.

“I need to discuss an important matter with you,” Penelope said, ignoring Cheryl’s hostile tone, “Come by the Maple Club tonight and we can discuss it in further details.”

“Pass,” Cheryl said quickly. She remembered Betty and Jughead talking about that garbage of a place when doing some investigative work on Hiram Lodge, “I’d rather not contract a disease, thank you very much.”

“Oh don’t be so dramatic,” Penelope chided, “Now be at the Maple Club at 6PM sharp. Tardiness will not be tolerated.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes at her mother’s words, “Not that it really matters, mother,” she spat the last word out harshly, “But I see no reason for me to come see you. Nana Rose and I are doing just fine without your presence. So if that’s all, I’ll be going now.”

Cheryl went to hang up the phone, but stopped as she heard her mother say one last thing.

“Not even if it has something to do with one, Lydia Topaz?”

Cheryl’s face faltered as she brought the phone back up to her ear. She shouldn’t be playing into whatever games her mother had devised this time, but that name. Toni’s mother. Cheryl had been trying for months to find anything she could on her girlfriend’s mother – to figure out where she was and if she could convince her to start a relationship with Toni. But she had been met with wall after wall. Now her mother was dangling this lead in front of her. But was it an actual lead or her mother just trying to mess with her?

“And what, pray tell, do you know about said woman?” Cheryl questioned, not in the mood to cave to her mother.

“Come to the Maple Club and find out, Cheryl. 6PM,” Penelope said sternly and then the line went dead.

Cheryl put her phone back in her bag and paced for a few minutes in her dressing room. Was she actually going to play into this game? There’s no way she would have any information on Toni’s mother. She’d done everything she could and even hired Veronica’s sister, Hermosa, to help investigate. But she had come up mostly empty handed. The last thing Hermosa was able to find on Lydia Topaz was a record of a part time job in Greendale two years ago before disappearing into the wind. There wasn’t a single trace of Toni’s mother left.

With the need to shop no longer at the forefront of her brain, Cheryl grabbed her bag and walked out of the dressing room. She approached Veronica and Betty, taking her purchased items, and letting them know she was too tired to continue on. They all went their separate ways and Cheryl quickly made her way back to Thistlehouse. Once there, she said hello to her Nana and hightailed it to her and Toni’s room, where she continued to pace.

There were a million things running through Cheryl’s head. Her mother was not a woman that could be trusted. She was the epitome of the devil incarnate! How could she be sure that Penelope had any substantive information on Toni’s mother? Even after Hermosa had spent months looking and still couldn’t find anything, how had her mother found any _leads_? It was all too confusing and Cheryl found herself at an impasse. She could either ignore her mother and carry on with her life or see what kind of _information_ there actually was. But Cheryl knew that if she didn’t talk to her mother, it would eat at her – that feeling of what-if. What if her mother knew something about Lydia Topaz? What if she knew where she was? And what if that information could help create a new relationship between Toni and her mother?

* * *

The Maple Club was dimly lit with accents of red everywhere. Various men and women were milling about sipping on drinks. Cheryl felt very out of place and definitely did not want to be there. A few of the men were looking at her in ways that made her sick and all she wanted to do was slap those disgusting looks off their faces. The nerve of men sometimes. Cheryl did her best to wave them off and ignore the comments made to her. Leave it to her mother to keep her waiting.

“Ah, there you are,” Penelope said, striding towards Cheryl, “I was with a young gentleman and we were just having too much fun. Couldn’t get him to keep his hands off me!”

Cheryl’s face scrunched up in disgust, “Yeah, I don’t really care. I just came here to get some information and then I will be on my way.”

Penelope grabbed a drink from the bar and took a sip, “Oh will you relax. There’s no need for you to be so hostile.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “Just get to the point, Night Hag. Toni is due home any minute and I’d like to be there when she gets home.”

Toni wasn’t actually going to be home for another few hours, but Cheryl wanted to get out of the Maple Club as soon as she could. The place was creepy as hell and she was not in the mood for more men to be ogling her.

“I know where Lydia Topaz is,” Penelope said, getting straight to it.

“Sure you do,” Cheryl said, not wanting to believe her mother.

Penelope pulled two folded pieces of paper out of her dark silk robe pocket and handed it to Cheryl, “Here’s your proof.”

Cheryl snatched the pieces of paper from her mother’s hand and unfolded them. The first was a jail record from somewhere in Upstate New York for Lydia Topaz. In the top corner was a mugshot of the woman, which helped Cheryl confirm that it was indeed Toni’s mother. The woman was older than the one she had seen in Toni’s photos of when she was younger, but nonetheless, it was Lydia Topaz. She scanned the record noting something about robbery, assault, and a bunch of other charges. She pulled the next piece of paper from behind the other and saw that it was a health record from the same jail. There was only one part that stood out to her as she read over it quickly. Lung cancer. Stage 3A.

Cheryl looked between the two pieces of paper again before meeting her mother’s amused gaze, “How do I know you didn’t falsify these, hmm?”

“You are more than welcome to check it out, Cheryl,” Penelope said calmly, taking another sip of her drink, “But it’s all true.”

“And what, exactly, do you get out of this, mother?” Cheryl asked coldly.

“Nothing, much,” Penelope said nonchalantly, “All I ask is that you leave that filth of a human being behind. Really, Cheryl, you’ve done enough damage to the Blossom name as it is. And now galivanting around with that…that thing! Deviant Cheryl. Just plain deviant.”

Cheryl laughed, actually laughed at her mother’s words. Sure, she was beyond angry that Penelope was calling Toni filth, but the audacity of this damn woman. Toni was far from the Southside filth and scum that so many people judged her for. Her circumstances weren’t the best, but Toni was such an angel. That girl would always put other’s needs before her own and Cheryl loved her for it. Cheryl wasn’t the easiest person to get along with, she knew that, but Toni was the only one who was willing to get to know her. To really get to know who Cheryl Blossom was. Toni was the only person who had shown Cheryl real love and she was not going to give that up.

“You just gave up your only bargaining chip,” Cheryl said waving the papers in her mother’s face, “If this information turns out to be right, I’ll have Toni’s mother out and in a hospital before the end of tomorrow.”

Cheryl was half expecting to see her mother’s face pale or possibly even show worry, but Penelope was just as calm as ever. It rubbed Cheryl the wrong way. She knew her mother was smart and wouldn’t have given up this information that easy, but surely there wasn’t anything more Penelope could do……right?

“Cheryl, you’ve always thought you knew better than everyone else,” Penelope said as she set her empty glass on the bar counter, “Even if you could get that woman out of jail, how would you pay for her treatments? Your monthly allowance from your trust fund wouldn’t even cover part of it.”

_Damnit_

Cheryl knew her mother was right. As per her father’s will, she would receive a specified amount of money each month from her trust fund, but wouldn’t be granted full access to it until she was eighteen, which was at the beginning of next year. But Cheryl knew she had to get Toni’s mother out as soon as possible. To have the best doctors look after her and give Toni the chance to have a relationship with her estranged mother. This was about Toni, not her.

“Nana Rose will cover the treatments,” Cheryl found herself confessing to Penelope, “We don’t need your tainted money.”

“That old bat needs to be in the hospital herself,” Penelope said harshly, “Child, do you really think I wouldn’t have a contingency plan in place?”

Cheryl looked at her confused. Of course Penelope had another plan up her sleeve.

Penelope pointed to the papers in Cheryl’s hand, “I gave you that information to show you that I can find people even when you can’t. I can also make them disappear just as easily.”

“What are you talking about?” Cheryl barked.

Penelope was the one laughing now, “I can have that woman transferred somewhere no one will ever find her, not even Hiram Lodge’s daughter that you’ve employed. One call from me and that woman is gone for good. Do not test me, Cheryl.”

Cheryl was at a loss for words. For once she thought she had Penelope backed into a corner, but her mother, being the snake she was, found a way to slither past her. She was the one backed into the corner now, as always. Even with her emancipation, Penelope Blossom still had a hold on her. But what if this was the only chance to find Toni’s mother? To make sure she was safe and getting the treatment that she needed. She couldn’t just give this up, but was it her choice to make? To make this important decision for Toni?

“I will ensure that her mother is freed and receives the treatment she needs at Riverdale General. But in return,” Penelope gave Cheryl an intense look, “You leave that girl and your deviant ways behind.”

Cheryl raked her hand through her hair, “Do you enjoy seeing me so unhappy, mother?” she said angrily, “You don’t have anything else to do but ruin my life? For once, I’ve found love and all you want to do is take that away from me!”

Penelope scoffed, “What do you know about love, Cheryl. You’re delusional if you thought what you have with that girl is anything close to that. You’ve never known love, except to rip it apart. Because you’re a jealous, spite-filled, starving, emotional anorexic.”

Every bite of Penelope’s words reverberated through Cheryl’s soul. She was such a hypocrite. Cheryl was accustomed to Penelope’s cruel words, but they were still painful to hear over and over again. What did Penelope Blossom know of love? She was in a loveless marriage, only hanging onto the _love_ she had for Jason. If you could even call it love. Why would she love one child but not the other? Cheryl hated her mother for never showing any sort of affection towards her, but knowing the kind of person Penelope Blossom was, she no longer wanted it. She no longer craved a motherly love that would never come, that would never be part of her life, because she had found another type of love in Toni Topaz. One that fulfilled her in ways she didn’t know was possible. And now, her mother wanted to destroy that.

Cheryl didn’t know how to respond to her mother. She knew deep down that Penelope was right. That this would be her only chance to find Lydia Topaz, but was she really willing to let Toni go?

“You have until the end of the month to make up your mind,” Penelope stated turning away from Cheryl, “And don’t try to pull one over on me, Cheryl. One call and she’s gone forever.” Penelope left Cheryl standing alone in the middle of The Maple Club, disappearing into one of the rooms.

Cheryl was frozen in place. She didn’t know what to do. Whatever decision she made, Toni would be upset. Upset that she didn’t get the chance to see her mother again after all these years or upset that Cheryl would break her heart. Cheryl grabbed her phone out of her bag and dialed a number as she headed out of that insidious place.

“Meet me at Pop’s, ASAP,” Cheryl clipped before hanging up the phone. She needed a plan. A plan that would hopefully get her out of this debacle.

* * *

Cheryl had no plan. No plan at all. It frustrated her beyond belief. Her meeting with Hermosa at Pop’s didn’t put her in any better mood and she may have been a little too harsh with her. But she needed her help with verifying the validity of the documents from Penelope. After discussing her predicament with the other raven-haired Lodge, Hermosa promised to let her know within 24 hours if Lydia Topaz was being held somewhere in Upstate. Now all Cheryl could do was wait.

She was back to pacing again in her room, waiting for Toni to get home. It was close to 9PM and Toni was bound to run up those stairs any minute. But what would she tell her? Tell her that she had been looking for her mother for months and she finally had a lead? Would Toni even want to know? Cheryl remembered the late night talks they had about Toni’s family. Her dad had passed away from a gang related incident when she was younger and then her mother left her just a year later, never to return. Toni had said that finding her mother wasn’t at the top of her priority list, but Cheryl had seen sadness behind those beautiful brown eyes with that answer. There was an unspoken need for Toni to know who her family was, why her mother had left, and if the reason for her mother’s departure was her fault.

Cheryl knew Toni wouldn’t take on this endeavor by herself, so she made it her mission to do it for her. She may be selfish sometimes, but with Toni, that girl always came before her own needs. But she still didn’t know what the right decision was now. If she decided not to free Toni’s mother, should she even bother with telling her about her attempts to find Lydia Topaz? What if Toni hated her for not even giving her the chance to get to know her mother? On the other hand, she could give Toni that chance to have a relationship with her mom, but at the cost of their relationship. This was so fucked up.

“Babe!” Toni called from the bottom of the stairs.

Cheryl schooled her features before answering, “In here!” she responded.

There were heavy footsteps on the stairs before Toni appeared in the doorway of their bedroom.

“Damn am I tired,” Toni said, taking off her Serpent jacket and hanging it on Cheryl’s vanity chair, “How was shopping?”

Cheryl smiled, hoping Toni couldn’t tell something was wrong, “Good. I actually got you a new pair of combat boots.”

“Babbbeee,” Toni said coming to embrace Cheryl, “I told you not to get me anything.”

“Did you really think that I wasn’t? Besides, you needed a new pair anyway.”

Toni kissed Cheryl softly, “As long as that’s the only thing you bought me. I don’t need anything else.”

“I’d buy the whole world for you if I could.”

Toni laughed, “I know you would, but I don’t need the world. Just you.”

Cheryl smiled and leaned in to connect her lips with Toni’s. How could she give this up?

“Now get your cute butt in bed. I’m dead tired and want to cuddle with my hot ass girlfriend.”

“You’re such a sap, Toni Topaz.”

“Shhhh. No one’s supposed to know.”

The two of them prepared for bed and soon enough were cuddled under the red silk sheets of their bed. Toni was wrapped around Cheryl’s back like a koala bear, her face buried in the soft neck of her girlfriend. Cheryl tried to relax, but her mind was wide awake. She wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but Toni’s breathing had evened out.

“TT,” Cheryl whispered, hoping her girlfriend hadn’t fallen asleep.

“Mmmm,” Toni hummed in response.

Cheryl took a few moments before asking her next questions, “Do you ever wonder where your mother is?”

Toni didn’t answer right away, Cheryl thinking she had passed out from exhaustion, but Toni shifted a little, releasing her hold around Cheryl, “Sometimes,” she mumbled, “But it doesn’t really matter.”

A few more seconds of silence filled the room.

“But if you could find your mother, would you want to?” Cheryl asked quietly.

“What?” Toni said waking up a bit more, “Baby, that is so random.”

Cheryl moved so her face was a few inches from Toni’s, “Can you just answer the question, please. If given the chance to have a relationship with your mother, would you take it?”

“I guess,” Toni said reaching out to push a few strands of Cheryl’s hair out of her face, “But I wouldn’t hold my breath.”

Cheryl nodded, the wheels in her head still turning.

“Why are you asking?”

Cheryl met Toni’s eyes, the moonlight from the large windows in the bedroom illuminating her face, “My mother called today.”

“What?” Toni said alarmingly, “Are you ok?”

“I’m fine,” Cheryl said, “She was just being her normal self, trying to drag me down and all.” She was telling Toni the truth, just maybe leaving out a few details.

“Geez,” Toni said threading her fingers through her own hair, “When will that woman ever stop.”

“I took care of it,” Cheryl said stiffly.

“Is that why you’re asking about mine?”

“I was just wondering if you’d ever thought about your relationship with your mother, because mine is so messed up.”

“Cher, I have no idea what my mom would be like now. But deep down, I know that she must still love me. Based on what my uncle and Grandpa have said, she left me to find work so she could take care of me. For a few years there was some money coming in, but eventually that stopped. So do I ever wonder where she is? Of course, but I believe if she’s still out there, she still loves me. And I know that she’d love you just as much as I do.”

Cheryl could feel her eyes starting to water. Toni Topaz was a literal Godsent. She was the only light in Cheryl’s life, but Toni had given her the answer she was looking for. Who was she to let this chance slip through her fingers? Toni would forgive her…eventually. And maybe even move on. The thought of that immediately sent pain straight through her heart, but she was doing this because she loved Toni. She’d find another person to love, people always did. But the love of a mother was even more scarce than that of a lover’s. She had a few weeks before her mother needed an answer, but she knew now was the time to keep Toni at an arm’s length. It was going to be hard enough leaving the girl who had stolen her heart.

Cheryl turned away from Toni, trying to hide the silent tears that fell from her eyes. She felt Toni wrap her arm around her waist again, pulling her closer to her chest. A soft kiss was pressed to the back of her head as Toni relaxed again. This was the hardest decision Cheryl was about to make, but this opportunity wouldn’t come again. A small part of her was hoping Hermosa could pull something out of her hat, but she knew the type of sway her mother had. The woman was always two steps ahead of her. Cheryl had tried to think of every possible scenario to keep her and Toni together, but she knew her mother had most likely thought of them as well, meaning there was no way out for Cheryl.

She was not ready to break the love of her life’s heart, but she couldn’t bear the thought of being hated for keeping her mother a secret. Maybe after all was said and done, Toni would come back, forgive her. But at least she would have her mother. Cheryl, on the other hand, would be back to where she had been before Toni came into her life. Alone and just waiting for day after day to end.

“I love you,” Cheryl whispered, hoping Toni was awake to hear her.

Toni tightened her hold around Cheryl’s waist, “I love you too, babe.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GAHHHHHH. I absolutely HATE this (literally my heart was hurting writing this), but Choni is endgame. FUCKING ENDGAME!
> 
> Few things here:  
> 1\. I had no idea what name to give Toni’s mother, but I tried (WE NEED HER FUCKING BACKSTORY ROBERTO)  
> 2\. Hope this chapter wasn’t too much of a letdown since it’s been 14 chapters already. But now you know the reason for Choni’s breakup. Fucking Penelope Blossom.  
> 3\. No idea when Cheryl’s birthday is, but for the sake of the story, she was only 17 and wouldn’t be 18 until the beginning of 2020.
> 
> ALSO, guys I just have to write the last 2 chapters of this story and I’ll be done. BUUUTTTT I’ve been procrastinating because I bought a new PS4 game and have been consumed by that. I know, excuses, excuses. But because I haven’t had the chance to write the last 2 chapters, I may have to slow down the updates to just 1 per week (I KNOW I’M SORRY!). I just don’t want to feel rushed to finish the last 2 chapters, but I’ll try my best to get them done ASAP so I don’t have to hold off on updates.
> 
> I will try my best to update the story on Tuesday/Wednesday if I can at least finish chapter 19, but if not, update will be on Saturday!


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cheryl and Toni finally have their talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s all led up to this! A few dramatic bits to begin with, of course, but then we get to concluding this little debacle they’ve got going on. I’m not a huge fan of this chapter, but I think I was getting tired of writing all the drama pieces and blah blah. So if the chapter seems bleh, I apologize. I may re-write it at some point, but not right now lol.

Cheryl decided to take another day before telling Toni the truth. She was apprehensive about prolonging their talk, but Toni seemed a little closed off after getting back from her motorcycle ride. Not to mention, Cheryl wasn’t feeling too great after Sweet Pea blew up on her. So yesterday, the two of them spent the day by the pool, mostly making small talk while Sweet Pea sent the occasional glare towards Cheryl. Throughout the day, Toni could tell Cheryl was a little reserved, but she didn’t say anything. After meeting Mad Dog, she had made up her mind to confront Cheryl, but decided against it after seeing that Cheryl was still pretty hungover. She was really trying to be patient, but she was getting to her breaking point.

Over the past seven months following their breakup, Toni had done everything she could to figure out why Cheryl had broken up with her – why it had all ended. She had texted and called all of their friends to pry all the information she could out of them, but to her surprise, none of them even knew the pair were no longer together. So instead of receiving information, she ended up telling everyone about the breakup, which made her feel even worse.

Another surprise for Toni was the reappearance of her mom a week after the breakup. Sheriff Jones had been responding to a domestic disturbance and had escorted a woman to Riverdale General when he saw her – Lydia Topaz; he hadn’t laid eyes on the woman in years. He phoned Toni quickly and waited at the hospital for her to show. Upon receiving FP’s call, Toni thought he was playing a joke on her, a not so funny joke in her opinion. But FP didn’t joke around. Why would her mother suddenly decide to come back now?

That night at the hospital had sent a flurry of emotions through Toni, more so than her breakup with Cheryl. She told FP to leave the second she stepped through the doors of the hospital. The reunion with her mom was something she had to do alone. She had no idea what she was going to say or if her mom would even remember what she looked like. But Toni was lost. She had lost the love of her life a week before and while her friends were trying to keep her spirits up, nothing was working.

Toni had been nervous to walk through the door of her mom’s room, psyching herself out by peeking through the small window every other minute. It had been ten years since the last time Toni saw her. She never thought she’d see her mom again. In all honesty, she thought Lydia Topaz was dead, probably overdosed on some poor quality drugs. But here she was. Hooked up to multiple machines and lying in a clean white bed in Riverdale General.

Toni tried to be quiet as she peeked into her mom’s hospital room, but her boots squeaked against the linoleum giving her away. The moment her mom had laid eyes on her, Toni knew she remembered her, remembered everything. And Toni was greeted with open arms. Maybe the world was throwing her a bone this time. But all she wanted to do was tell Cheryl. She was the first person that Toni wanted to call up and have with her. To help figure out her next step and how to maneuver through this new relationship. But Cheryl wasn’t there and she wasn’t in Toni’s life anymore. Toni was on her own.

Seven months and now here they were. Stuck in a house spending more and more time together. Toni knew Cheryl’s feelings for her were still there, the party the other night being the obvious answer. But she wasn’t willing to jump back into a relationship with Cheryl if they couldn’t communicate. They needed to build that foundation of trust again, beginning with the truth of their breakup.

Cheryl and Toni were sitting on the island eating lunch. Toni did her best to ignore Cheryl’s weird behavior, but it was getting more difficult.

“So,” Toni said taking a bite of her sandwich, “You ever going to give me my hoodie back?”

Cheryl was wearing Toni’s light green hoodie again. She didn’t want to tell Toni that it brought her some sort of comfort, but she also wasn’t willing to let it go anytime soon, “I don’t know what you mean, TT.”

Toni laughed, “It’s fine if you keep it, just admit that it’s mine.”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “And what would be the point of that?”

“Just so you know it’s mine and not yours.”

“Fine,” Cheryl huffed in annoyance, “Yes, it’s yours.”

Toni smirked.

“But you’re not getting it back.”

“Fine by me. It looks better on you anyway.”

Cheryl gave her a small smile as they continued finishing up their lunch. Veronica waltzed into the room and approached the two, standing on the other side of the island.

“Well good morning you two,” Veronica said happily.

“Hey Veronica,” Toni said, eating some more food.

Cheryl rolled her eyes again, “We don’t want to hear about your sexcapades with Andrews, V. We hear it enough from our bedrooms.”

Veronica blushed, “Not what I wanted to chat about, Cheryl.”

“Well, what do you want then,” Cheryl said crossing her arms, “We were in the middle of something.” She didn’t like when people interrupted her time alone with Toni.

“I just came by to see if you guys would interested in taking the boat out. Daddy has one docked at Marina Del Rey. We would have gone out earlier, but it needed gas, which we were able to get yesterday. So you guys in? Everyone else is coming along.”

Toni looked at Cheryl seeing her face pale at Veronica’s question. She knew Cheryl had a fear of large bodies of water, especially after her incident at Sweetwater River. It was surprising that Veronica hadn’t remembered that since she was there when it happened. But Cheryl didn’t like to talk about that day. Toni had heard part of what happened from Jughead, mostly bits and pieces. It wasn’t until they had started dating and Toni had surprised Cheryl with a picnic at Sweetwater River that she learned about Cheryl’s incident.

She had tried to convince Cheryl to come swim with her, but remembered Cheryl just being frozen in place and on the verge of a panic attack. After a few minutes of trying to get Cheryl’s breathing under control, Cheryl had shared what happened to her the last time she had been to Sweetwater River. Toni didn’t mean to bring up any bad memories for her girlfriend, but Cheryl was actually glad that they were there. She needed Toni to know everything, including all the skeletons in her closet. Toni was the first person that Cheryl could really confide in and trust with her past.

“We’re good,” Toni answered for them.

_We. Toni had said we. Well, at least some version of that._

Cheryl gave Toni a surprised look. Her eyes meeting Toni’s with nothing but gratitude and love. Yes, love, because Cheryl Blossom was still so deeply in love with Toni Topaz.

“Suit yourselves,” Veronica said grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge, “Just lock up if you decide to leave the house. We won’t be back until late tonight.” She began to walk away, but not before smirking and saying one last thing to them, “Oh, and you guys remember, no sex in the theater room. Bye!”

Veronica quickly left the room, missing the annoyed groan that came from Cheryl and Toni spewing water from her mouth.

“Oh my god,” Toni coughed as she tried to clean up the mess.

“You could have gone with them, TT,” Cheryl said, helping Toni clean up, “I hope you didn’t say that just to keep me company.”

“There’s always another time. We’ll be here for awhile. Besides, I wouldn’t have as much fun without you there.”

Cheryl loved and hated how selfless Toni could be, always putting someone else’s needs before her own, “I would have been fine alone here.”

“I know, but I didn’t want you to be. And I’d rather be with you.”

_Toni, always the sweet-talker._

“So, what are we going to do now that we have the whole place to ourselves.”

Toni shrugged, “Whatever you want, Bombshell. But just remember what Veronica said, no sex in the theater.”

Cheryl was the one coughing on her water now, “Oh you wish, Topaz.” But she wasn’t opposed to the idea either.

Toni laughed, “I was actually thinking of taking the motorcycle out again tonight. Want to come along?”

Cheryl hadn’t been on the back of a motorcycle since their breakup. No one in the friend group owned a bike except Jughead, but Cheryl didn’t even count him as a friend. She missed being on the back of a motorcycle, though. If you had asked her if she liked riding them a year ago, she would have scoffed and said there was nothing fun about them unless you wanted to die. But now, she craved to take another ride, to feel the wind against her and the adrenaline of speeding through the streets. She’d missed it just as much as she’d missed Toni. Or maybe the love of being on a bike was just an added bonus of dating Toni. Cheryl wouldn’t have enjoyed it as much if it hadn’t been for Toni. That girl who could convince her to do anything.

“Wouldn’t want to do anything else,” Cheryl said smiling.

After finishing up their lunch, they said their goodbyes to everyone else in the house. Sweet Pea and Fangs tried to convince Toni to come with them, but she simply waved them off. Toni wasn’t dumb, though. She could tell her two best friends didn’t want her hanging around Cheryl any more than she already was, especially Sweet Pea.

Before going to sleep last night, Toni had cornered Sweet Pea in the backyard, forcing him to tell her what the hell his problem was. She had noticed him giving Cheryl the third degree and not so friendly looks over the past few days and she was sick of it. After pestering him for a good five minutes, he told her about his confrontation with Cheryl in the kitchen. Toni wanted so desperately to strangle him right there. She could take care of herself and didn’t need his protection. He then went on about how he was trying to keep Toni from making the same mistake again, which had been a poor choice of words on his part because Toni had blown up.

Her relationship with Cheryl was definitely not a mistake. Sweet Pea was supposed to be her brother, someone to support her in everything. And now, he was basically calling Cheryl a mistake. She had been furious. He didn’t have the right to assert himself in Toni and Cheryl’s business and definitely not their relationship, or whatever the hell they were calling it right now.

Cheryl wasn’t perfect, but no one is. In Toni’s eyes, though, Cheryl was the closest thing to perfect that she’d ever come across. And she was not going to let anyone, not even one of her best friends, treat her badly. Toni had forgiven Cheryl a long time ago. She couldn’t bring herself to hate the girl she was still madly in love with. People might not understand Cheryl as much as Toni did, but they never took the time to. Cheryl was difficult to get along with, to an extent, but if you didn’t have the patience to actually learn and get to know her, then you’d never know the real Cheryl, the Cheryl that Toni saw and loved.

Sweet Pea ended up apologizing profusely to Toni for overstepping, which she in turn told him to grow a pair and apologize to Cheryl. Their relationship wasn’t any of his business. She loved him for trying to be protective, but he needed to cut that shit out.

Once everyone had left the house, Toni convinced Cheryl to play a few games on Veronica’s Nintendo Switch. They started playing Mario Party, but after Cheryl kept winning, Toni suggested Mario Kart. She was sure she could beat Cheryl at this game. That turned out to be very wrong. Cheryl was surprisingly really good at video games and kept winning game after game. It got to a point where Toni would purposefully mess with Cheryl’s controller or get in her way of the TV just to keep her from winning; it still didn’t work.

“You’ve always been such a sore loser,” Cheryl joked as they walked back into the kitchen.

“Have not! You were definitely cheating.”

“It’s ok to admit when you’re not good at something, TT.”

“Nope, you were definitely cheating.”

Cheryl laughed, “Always a sore loser.”

They had been playing video games for a few hours and it was now dinner time. Toni wasn’t in the mood to make any food, so she decided to order them a pizza, making sure to add toppings that Cheryl liked. Forty minutes later the two girls were eating slice after slice in the garden and enjoying each other’s company.

“Wait, wait,” Cheryl said trying to control her laughter, “Did you guys actually do that?”

“Yes!” Toni said laughing, “Sweet Pea was being an asshole to Fangs so we decided to get some revenge. He took some girl on a date and we crashed it. You should have seen the look on his face. The girl didn’t have a problem with it until Fangs started acting like he and Sweet Pea were a thing.”

Cheryl was full on laughing.

“The girl upped and left us all sitting there in Pop’s thinking Sweet Pea was cheating on Fangs. Sweet Pea was mad as hell, but it was hilarious.”

“I can only imagine.”

“So,” Toni said taking a bite of her pizza, “Keeping the Vixens in shape, renovating Thistlehouse, and keeping up your shopping addiction. What else has Cheryl Bombshell been up to?”

Cheryl rolled her eyes, “I do not have a shopping addiction. Everyone needs to stop saying that.”

“Cher, you have like four of the same things. I’m surprised you didn’t pack a whole second bag.”

“I can pack light!”

Toni chuckled, “Barely.”

“Besides healthily filling out my wardrobe, I’ve been preparing my things for Highsmith. But now with everything happening, who knows if universities will open back up.”

Toni shrugged, “I get that. NYU has sent me a few emails on their current plan, which is just to do everything virtual come August. But we’ll see.”

“Isn’t this all just crazy?” Cheryl found herself asking.

Toni knew that Cheryl was talking about the pandemic, but her mind kept wandering to their relationship. And yes, it was crazy that they were no longer together. They had planned a future together and yet, here they were apart and planning on attending different colleges. She missed having these conversations with Cheryl, little banters and small talk. It wasn’t the same with Sweet Pea and Fangs. The relationship between friends is a whole different scale than the one of a lover.

“Yeah, it is,” Toni answered, “But we’ll get through it.”

The two shared a smile before continuing with their meal. They spent another thirty minutes catching each other up on the past few months. Cheryl didn’t have much to update Toni on, mostly because her routine consisted of going to and from school and Thistlehouse. She didn’t do much in her free time, as Toni had usually been the one to occupy it, but Cheryl didn’t tell her that. Toni, on the other hand, had been busy with Serpent things, no surprise there, but briefly told Cheryl about finding her mom after all these years. Cheryl listened the best that she could, but it was hard because she already knew how Toni’s mother had gotten to the hospital. Based on the stories that Toni told her, she was beyond happy to find her mother before she passed away. So Cheryl had made the right choice. Not one that she had made lightly, but nonetheless, the right one.

As soon as Cheryl had broken up with Toni, she had texted her mother letting her know that she had kept up her side of this wicked deal. It wasn’t until a few days later that Cheryl looked at her phone again, her mother sending her all the information of Lydia Topaz’s treatment and hospitalization at Riverdale General. It was done. But Cheryl’s heart had been shattered.

Over the past few months, Cheryl did her best to keep up with Lydia Topaz’s hospital records, paying off doctor after doctor to get secret updates from them. She hoped Penelope wouldn’t find out about Cheryl paying off the hospital staff, but it didn’t really matter. Her mother’s main mission had been completed, breaking up her and Toni. Penelope wouldn’t care what Cheryl did after the fact. So Cheryl kept her distance, watching from afar. Eventually that became too hard for her, so she stopped after Thanksgiving. To her, Toni had moved on. She had a new relationship with her mother, so there was no need for her to be lurking in the shadows.

“Ok, Bombshell,” Toni said wiping the remnants of pizza from her hands, “Go grab your Serpent jacket and we can go.”

“What?” Cheryl asked surprised.

“Cher, I saw it in your suitcase the other night.”

“I, ummm, it’s just…”

“It’s ok. Remember, once a Serpent, always a Serpent. I’m actually glad that you didn’t get rid of it.”

“Really?” Cheryl asked as they walked back towards the house.

“Yeah, I know you love that jacket.”

Cheryl nodded.

“Plus, you always looked hot in it,” Toni smirked as she left Cheryl standing in place.

Leave it to Toni Topaz to be a huge flirt.

* * *

The two girls were currently weaving in and out of cars on the interstate, heading to their destination. Cheryl had tried to get Toni to tell her where they were headed, but all she got in response was that it was a surprise. Toni had found a spare helmet in the Lodge’s garage that was a tad too big for Cheryl, but it was the best they could do. Her bright red one that Toni had gifted her was somewhere in her closet in Thistlehouse collecting dust. They were both wearing their Serpent jackets, the moment feeling nostalgic. Almost two years ago, they were riding cross country together on the back of Toni’s motorcycle. It was one of the best times of their lives and the moment they had really fallen in love.

Cheryl had missed the feeling of wearing her Serpent jacket outside the confines of Thistlehouse. She hadn’t felt comfortable with wearing it around Riverdale, considering she had basically walked out on them. But she couldn’t bear being around those she had called family and especially the girl who had stolen her heart. It was better for her to just walk away and never look back. Her serpent jacket had become a huge part of who she was. When Jughead and FP had given it to her, the jacket had symbolized her emancipation from her mother and the introduction to a new family. It was the beginning of a new start for her and a relationship that would fully consume her over the next few years.

Thirty minutes later and Toni was pulling to the side of the road, putting the bike in park. Cheryl looked around and noticed they were at a large park, the Hollywood sign illuminated on the hills against the night sky.

“I didn’t think you wanted to hike up to it again,” Toni said removing her helmet, “So this was the best I could find with views of the sign.”

Cheryl removed her helmet and took in the area around them.

_Lake Hollywood Park_

The first time she and Toni had come to Los Angeles, she had convinced Toni to hike closer to the sign at Griffith Park. Toni had complained most of the way there, considering she hated doing cardio, but the views and pictures they had taken were well worth it.

“I would have snuck us behind the sign, but I read something about a huge fine and a very rocky hike,” Toni said leading them to the open space of the park, “So this will have to do.”

“It’s perfect, TT,” Cheryl said smiling, taking in a breath of the fresh air. She was glad to get out of the house for a bit.

The two found a grassy patch in front of the Hollywood sign and sat down. There were a few other people walking around, but for the most part it was scarce. They sat there for a few minutes just staring up at the sign reminiscing about the first time they had seen it, all the happy memories they had made in the city.

“Do you still remember?” Cheryl asked quietly.

“Remember what?”

“Us…”

Toni had not been expecting that. She thought they would have just chilled at the park for an hour or so, head back to the house and continue on with their friendly chats every so often. But now Cheryl wanted to talk about them? Was she even ready to fully divulge the whole truth or would Toni be stuck with being in the dark per usual?

“Kind of hard to forget,” Toni said looking down at her outstretched legs.

Cheryl reached out to take Toni’s hand in hers, but Toni moved her hand away and stood up beginning to pace back and forth. She was about to burst.

“Toni...” Cheryl said, a little hurt by Toni’s actions.

“I can’t do this,” Toni said, trying to keep a grasp on her emotions. She didn’t want to yell at Cheryl or be angry, but she’d bottled up her emotions for too long.

“Can’t do what?” Cheryl snapped, standing up.

“This,” Toni motioned between them, “Whatever _this_ is,” she emphasized.

“I don’t understand,” Cheryl said crossing her arms, “I just asked you a simple question.”

“Simple? There is nothing simple about this situation!”

“What are you talking about?”

Toni massaged her temples trying to get a bearing on what exactly she wanted to say, “I’m tired, Cheryl. I’m tired of trying to understand what the hell happened between us. I’ve held on for so long, hoping you’d eventually tell me. But I’m done! I can’t wait for you anymore. I have to move on.”

“You hypocrite,” Cheryl said incredulously, “You told me you’d be patient. That I could tell you the truth when I was ready!”

“Were you ever going to be ready, Cheryl? It’s been seven months! Seven fucking months! By the looks of it, you could go on with the rest of your life without ever telling me.”

Cheryl was left gobsmacked by Toni’s words. Did she really believe that Cheryl would never tell her the truth? That Cheryl wasn’t also hurting since their breakup? Cheryl had wanted to stop Toni from leaving Thistlehouse the day they had broken up, to tell Toni the truth and tell her mother to shove it. But everything was so damn complicated and she had chosen, what she assumed, to be the easiest option.

“I was going to tell you!” Cheryl almost screamed, “I am going to tell you. I’ve been wanting to ever since you walked out on me.”

“I walked out on you!” Toni said, her voice tinged with anger, “You broke my heart, Cheryl! You told me our lives were headed in different directions or whatever bullshit it was.”

“I know everything that I did was kind of crazy, but you have to trust me that I did it for the right reasons!”

“How am I supposed to trust you if you can’t even communicate with me and tell me the goddamn truth!”

“Because I love you!” Cheryl yelled.

Toni opened and closed her mouth, unable to speak. She didn’t know what to say. Love. Not loved as in the past tense. Cheryl Blossom was still in love with her, “What?”

“I love you!” Cheryl repeated, “I never stopped.” Tears began to fall from Cheryl’s face.

“Then why, Cher? What was all of this about?” Toni asked more calmly.

Cheryl looked down at the ground, “Your mother.”

“My mom? What about her?”

Cheryl looked up into Toni’s eyes, “This was all because of her.”

“Cher, what are you talking about?”

“Our breakup! **_My_** mother was the one that found Lydia Topaz and put her into treatment at Riverdale General. I tried everything I could to get her out of jail on my own, but I just didn’t have the resources! I tried Toni, I really did.”

“Wait, that’s how my mom got there.”

Cheryl nodded, “But at the price of our relationship. I had to end things between us for my mother to get your mother out of jail and get her the treatment she needed.”

Toni ran her hands through her hair. Everything was making sense now. She knew someone had to have put her mom in the hospital, but she could never figure out who it was. Toni had her suspicions that Cheryl had played a role in it, but still couldn’t connect the dots between that and their breakup. But now everything was out in the open. She knew the truth behind their breakup, or most of it, and all she wanted to do was fly back to Riverdale and beat the crap out of Penelope Blossom.

“TT,” Cheryl said brokenly, “Believe me. I wanted to tell you everything, but I couldn’t until I had full access to my trust fund and my hideous mother just –“

“Cher, shut up,” Toni interrupted.

“What?”

“Just shut up,” Toni said closing the space between them and pulling Cheryl in for a brutal kiss.

Electricity. That’s what Cheryl felt course through her body as Toni kissed her, that familiar tingling sensation shooting through her. She had craved this feeling for months. Her body melted into Toni’s as she kissed back with all the love she felt for the other girl, her hands wrapping around Toni’s waist. Finally, the secret that Cheryl had been hiding was free from that box she had kept locked away and hidden. And Toni hadn’t run away as soon as Cheryl had confessed it all. Toni was still here, by her side, and kissing her! She had dreamt about this moment numerous times, but nothing could compare to the real thing.

Toni slowly pulled away, wiping away a few of her own tears as well as Cheryl’s, “I love you too,” she said before connecting their lips again.

They still had more to discuss, but for now, they were living in the moment. It had been seven months without feeling the other’s lips on their own. It felt like the kiss they had shared on Venice beach the night they had confessed their love to one another. There were still some questions that Toni wanted answers to, but all she wanted to do was kiss the girl she was so in love with. After everything they’d been through, Toni knew, together, they’d come out stronger than ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a difficult chapter for me to write. I think I had major writer’s block so I apologize if this was anti-climactic and just choppy. I actually scrapped the initial plan for this chapter because it was getting really long and I don’t think it really needed some of the scenes I had originally written (it was basically just boat scenes). Plus, it would have added even more drama/angst to this and I’m getting real tired of that. Whatever, they’re going to talk more in later chapters, so don’t worry. Still hate this chapter though haha.
> 
> You’ll get to see more of Toni’s mom in later chapters so don’t worry. I’m not leaving her out.
> 
> Next update will be Saturday/Sunday!


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Short flashback chapter from Toni’s POV.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No idea what I was doing with this chapter. It was more of a filler, but next chapter… things are going to be heating up ;)

_October 2019_

Halloween. It was Cheryl’s favorite holiday. That’s all that Toni was thinking about today. She wondered what her girlfriend…well now ex-girlfriend, was doing. No doubt dressed to the nines in some costume that made her look beyond hot. She remembered last year dressing up as Harley Quinn with Cheryl as Poison Ivy. Toni wasn’t too thrilled about dressing up, but she had also never really had the chance to. After all was said and done, Toni absolutely loved her costume. Leave it to Cheryl to go above and beyond with their outfits.

But this Halloween, she was sitting in Pop’s alone, sipping on her second chocolate shake and aimlessly throwing one curly fry after the next into her mouth. A few other people were in the diner, but most were out at parties or watching their kids trick-or-treat. It’d been almost two months since her breakup with Cheryl and she was doing the best that she could. She was grateful that her mom was keeping her from spiraling. Ever since the reappearance of Lydia Topaz, Toni had spent almost every day with her mom at the hospital, sitting with her during her treatments and getting her updated on her life. The only thing Toni left out from her life was Cheryl. She wasn’t ready to share with her mom about the love she once had and how it had completely consumed her life. Toni would tell her mom eventually, but she just wasn’t ready yet.

The bell from the door in Pop’s dinged, but Toni thought nothing of it. People were always coming in and out to grab a quick bite or meet up with friends. She had given up hope that a certain red-haired girl would walk through the door and embrace her and they could go back to how things were.

“There you are!” Fangs exclaimed, sitting on the stool next to Toni, “We’ve been looking all over for you.”

Sweet Pea sat down on the other side of Toni, “Why didn’t you pick up your phone?”

Toni shrugged, “It’s on silent.”

The two boys gave each other a look before one of them grabbed Toni’s milkshake from under her.

“Hey!”

“Tell us what’s wrong,” Fangs said.

“You know what’s wrong,” Toni huffed snatching her milkshake back.

_Don't take your love away from me_

_Don't you leave my heart in misery_

_If you go then I'll be blue_

_'Cause breaking up is hard to do_

“Oh my god,” Toni complained resting her head on the counter, “One of you go tell Pop to change the song please.”

_They say that breaking up is hard to do_

_Now I know_

_I know that it's true_

_Don't say that this is the end_

_Instead of breaking up I wish that we were making up again_

“Now!” Toni yelled into the counter.

Fangs quickly got up and found Pop in the back asking him to please change the song. He didn’t know what was going on with Toni, but he definitely didn’t want to be on her bad side.

“Done,” Fangs said coming back to the other two, “Now will you please tell us what’s going on?”

Toni lifted her head and finished off her milkshake before waving for another one from the waitress.

“I’m surprised you’re not getting wasted at the Wyrm,” Sweet Pea said stuffing a handful of Toni’s fries in his mouth.

“I’m a tad offended that you guys would think I’d be drunk off my ass,” Toni said sarcastically.

“Well, you weren’t very forthcoming about what happened between you and Cheryl,” Fangs said.

“Honestly,” Toni said grabbing for her new shake, “I’m not sure what happened.”

_Put your head on my shoulder_

_Hold me in your arms, baby_

_Squeeze me oh so tight_

_Show me that you love me too_

“Seriously!” Toni clipped, “What is up with this damn playlist.”

“I can’t believe Cheryl just broke up with you like that,” Sweet Pea said angrily, “I told you Northsiders couldn’t be trusted.”

“Oh, don’t even start,” Toni said rolling her eyes, “We all know you and Josie were hooking up.”

“That’s not the same. It was just sex. You and Red decided to start a whole relationship.”

“And?” Toni asked, “At least I had a real relationship instead of meaningless flings.”

“And see where that got you!”

“Ok, enough,” Fangs said, “We’re not here to judge your relationship with Cheryl.”

Toni scoffed, “Really, because that’s exactly what you guys are doing.”

“We just want to make sure you’re ok,” Fangs said, “You’ve been really quiet at all the Serpent meetings and um…”

“And what?” Toni asked.

Fangs was quiet.

“Spit it out Fangs!”

“I can hear you crying in your sleep.”

Toni froze. She had been couch surfing for a week before Fangs let her stay at his trailer. She was still sleeping on his couch. Tt was better than a park bench, but nowhere near as nice as sleeping next to Cheryl in their…her four poster bed. Damn she missed her girlfriend.

_Ex-girlfriend_.

Toni still wasn’t used to calling Cheryl her ex. For the first few weeks, Toni had hated Cheryl for breaking her heart, for just throwing away everything they had built together. But she came to realize that it wasn’t hate she was feeling. It was pain from how much she loved Cheryl. They had found each other during some of the darkest times in their lives and had been each other’s support system. Toni thought she knew what heartbreak felt like. She thought it would feel the same as when her mother had disappeared from her life, but her breakup with Cheryl was so much worse. It felt like someone had taken a knife to her chest and carved out her heart. Her heart belonged to Cheryl and without her, Toni felt empty and void of any emotions.

“It’s nothing,” Toni answered, “I’m just working through some things.”

“Look, Tiny,” Sweet Pea said sincerely, “I know we weren’t you and Cheryl’s number one fans, but we hate seeing you like this.”

“Yeah,” Fangs added, “We miss hanging out with you and seeing you happy.”

“Kind of hard when the love of your life walks out on you.”

The boys shared another look. They weren’t really good at talking about relationships or giving the right advice, but they tried.

“I know,” Fangs said, “But you’re not alone.”

“We’re here for you, Toni,” Sweet Pea said wrapping his arm around Toni’s shoulders, “And you best believe we’re not going anywhere.”

“You’re stuck with us,” Fangs said smiling.

Toni smiled. She really did have the best friends ever, “Thanks guys. That really means a lot.”

“Now how about we put the milkshakes down and go get a real drink at the Whyte Wyrm,” Sweet Pea suggested.

“Would love to,” Toni said, getting the waitresses attention, “But I was going to stop by the hospital to see my mom and bring her a burger. She’s been craving them ever since she got back to Riverdale.”

“You ever figure out who put her in the hospital?” Fangs asked.

“Not a clue,” Toni said grabbing the food she had pre-ordered from the waitress, “I was going to ask my mom tonight, seeing as she’s a little more lucid.”

“Well, let us know what you find out,” Sweet Pea said standing up from the counter.

“And tell your mom we said hi!” Fangs said walking towards the entrance with Sweet Pea, “Wish we could stop by again.”

Toni laughed, “If you guys would stop messing with all the equipment, maybe the hospital staff will let you back in.”

The boys shrugged, “We’ll just keep sneaking in when they’re not paying attention.”

“Get out of here,” Toni chuckled as she followed them outside, “And don’t get too wasted tonight!”

“No promises!” Sweet Pea yelled as he put his helmet on and started his motorcycle.

Fangs waved to Toni as he followed Sweet Pea out of the parking lot on his own bike. Toni watched her two friends disappear towards the Southside before strapping in the food from Pop’s and starting up her own bike. She loved those two dorks and was so thankful to have them in her life. The last two months had been hard for her and she’d taken their company for granted. Her breakup with Cheryl wasn’t going to be easy for her to get over, but she knew Sweet Pea and Fangs would be there every step of the way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The songs playing in the diner were:  
> Breakin’ Up Is Hard To Do by Neil Sedaka  
> Rest Your Head On My Shoulder by Paul Anka
> 
> Random question for you readers: I was re-watching the season 3 finale and was thinking of that scene where Penelope drugs Toni before going to The Farm to retrieve one of the twins. Why didn’t she just kill Toni? She was willing to kill the core four. Like if she really didn’t like Toni and Cheryl being together, wouldn’t the best way to hurt Cheryl be to get rid of Toni? So does that mean in some small way, Penelope does really care for Cheryl? I am not trying to make any excuses for that woman or justify what she’s done to Cheryl, but just wanted to see if anybody else thought the same thing?
> 
> Next update will be Tuesday/Wednesday!


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well it’s about damn time ;)

Toni pinned Cheryl against her bedroom door, her hands on the red-head’s hips and her mouth kissing her with an immense passion. It was a welcome feeling after the many months they had spent apart. Toni hadn’t been with anyone else ever since their breakup, knowing that no one could ever compare to Cheryl. The boys had set her up on a few blind dates, but she never went through with them. Cheryl was always on her mind and she felt that if she went on a date, she’d be betraying the one she loved the most.

Their Serpent jackets had been shed and thrown carelessly somewhere in Toni’s room along with their tops. They needed to feel as close as possible to one another. Cheryl’s mouth fell open with a soft moan as Toni began sucking at the skin of her neck. She would no doubt have a few hickies there tomorrow, but nothing mattered except being back in the arms of the person she craved the most.

Toni wasn’t quite sure how she didn’t end up crashing the bike on the way back to the house. Cheryl couldn’t keep her hands to herself and Toni was beyond turned on. As soon as they had pulled into the garage, Cheryl was on her. Their mouths fought for control and they had a pretty heated makeout session in the garage before getting into the house. It was a surprise that they even made it to Toni’s room without ripping each other’s clothes off first. Toni was thankful that nobody else was in the house yet. It wasn’t like they were sneaking around, but she definitely didn’t want anyone to interrupt them.

“Wait, wait,” Toni said breathlessly putting some space between them, “We should slow down.”

“Right, right,” Cheryl said taking a moment.

They were both a little disheveled and their lips were puffy from all of their making out. There were certain things that they still needed to figure out and discuss, but being back together like this was something they had both been dreaming about for months. Despite Penelope Blossom trying to tear them apart, their love persevered. And Toni would be damned if she let anyone or anything else come between them again. She was never letting Cheryl go this time.

Their eyes met in the dark room, the only source of light coming from the moon through the windows. Toni could see Cheryl biting her lip and the lust behind her eyes.

_Damn she looked fucking hot._

“We’ve waited long enough,” Cheryl practically growled claiming Toni’s mouth again and guiding her towards the bed.

Cheryl pushed Toni down on the bed and straddled her immediately, Toni’s hands coming to rest on her ass. She had been so sexually frustrated since the beginning of this damn quarantine and needed some release. Her movements may have come off a little hastily, but there was nothing but love in every touch and caress of Toni’s skin under her fingertips. She started to kiss down Toni’s neck and in between her breasts, slowing making her way down.

“Fuck,” Toni moaned as Cheryl left a trail of wet kisses down her body. Her skin felt like it was on fire.

Cheryl sat up and undid the button on Toni’s jeans, moving to take them off, but Toni stopped her.

“What?” Cheryl asked out of breath.

“I just want to make sure you want this,” Toni said sitting up and caressing Cheryl’s face, “I don’t want us to rush into anything.”

_Leave it to Toni to always make sure she was ok._

“TT,” Cheryl said taking Toni’s hands in hers, “I’ve missed you so damn much. Not having you in my life since the end of last summer did a number on me. I want you so badly. Now and for the rest of my life.”

Toni closed the gap between them, pulling Cheryl in by the neck for a deep kiss. Cheryl Blossom was so damn intoxicating. She easily slid her tongue into Cheryl’s mouth, savoring the cherry chapstick the red-head on. Toni was glad that Cheryl didn’t have her signature red lipstick on, because that would have made things a lot messier. Their tongues fought for dominance for a few seconds before Cheryl relented and let Toni take control of the kiss. They were trying to map out every inch of each other’s mouths, to remember what kissing each other felt like.

“Wait,” Toni said, briefly pulling away again, “Just to double check, you’re ok with us..”

“I swear to God, Toni, if you don’t fuck me now I’ll do it myself!”

That wasn’t exactly what Toni was going for, but she didn’t need to be told twice. She quickly hooked her legs behind Cheryl’s and flipped them over so that Cheryl was on her back. Toni placed a few kisses along Cheryl’s collarbone as her hands unclasped Cheryl’s lacy red bra, throwing the garment somewhere in the room.

“Toni,” Cheryl moaned as the pink-haired girl took one of her nipples in her mouth.

Toni moved her hands to the waistband of Cheryl’s yoga pants and pulled them off in one swift motion. Moving back up to caress Cheryl’s breasts, Toni cupped Cheryl’s center through her underwear making the other girl slightly arch her back.

“Fuck, baby,” Toni groaned, rubbing Cheryl through her underwear, “You’re so wet.”

“Take them off,” Cheryl begged.

Toni did as told and kissed her way down Cheryl’s abdomen, slowly sliding the matching red lace panties down her legs, throwing them behind her. She had missed these very intimate moments with Cheryl and wanted to savor every minute of it.

Cheryl’s legs fell open, inviting Toni in. Toni didn’t hesitate, hooking her arms around Cheryl’s thighs and kissing the inside of them. She sucked and bit at the sensitive skin, earning a moan from Cheryl before soothing it with her tongue.

“Toni, please” Cheryl whined, lifting her head. She desperately needed her to get to where she really wanted.

Toni smirked, “Patience is a virtue, Cher. Isn’t that what you were always telling me.”

“Now is not the time to be a smart ass, TT,” Cheryl groaned as Toni nipped at the inside of her thigh again. “Please, I need you,” Cheryl moaned.

Cheryl was right. They’d waited long enough to be back together again. Toni wanted their reunion to be sweet and romantic, but the noises coming from Cheryl’s mouth were driving her insane, her own underwear thoroughly soaked. Without a second thought, Toni dove into Cheryl’s core, running her tongue through her wet folds.

Cheryl’s head fell back against the pillow as she shut her eyes, “Oh, fuck.”

Toni couldn’t help but moan at the taste of Cheryl on her tongue. That familiar sweet nectar, flooding her taste buds. And her smell…

_Damn._

Toni was in absolute heaven. Every swipe of her tongue caused the sweetest moans to tumble from Cheryl’s mouth. She could feel the red-head’s nails digging into her hair and Cheryl bucking up against her mouth, silently begging for more.

Cheryl’s breathing was becoming uneven and her legs were beginning to shake as Toni sucked her clit. She hadn’t been with anyone since their breakup and knew it wasn’t going to take much for her to come.

Toni easily slid two fingers into Cheryl, feeling the girl’s walls clamp down on them.

“Oh my God,” Cheryl moaned, feeling Toni slowly move her fingers in and out of her.

Toni sucked Cheryl’s clit for a few more seconds before pulling her mouth away and moving back up Cheryl’s body for a brutal kiss.

Cheryl moaned as she tasted herself on Toni’s lips, her eyes still closed. She was beginning to sweat and could feel that familiar heat coiling in her lower abdomen.

“I know you’re close baby,” Toni said, her fingers picking up speed and curling inside Cheryl. She placed her forehead against Cheryl’s, her fingers searching for that certain spot that would drive the other girl crazy

Cheryl whimpered, her nails digging into Toni’s back as Toni found her spot and continuously pressed into it.

“Come on baby,” Toni said breathlessly rubbing Cheryl’s clit with her thumb as her fingers continued to move inside her, “Let go for me.”

Cheryl briefly opened her eyes and as soon as she made contact with Toni’s, she was done for, “Fuck!” she yelled, her eyes slamming shut as her walls gripped Toni’s fingers and her back arched up from the bed.

Toni held Cheryl’s hips down as she helped the red-head ride out her high, “Damn, I missed seeing you like this,” she placed light kisses along Cheryl’s cheeks and down her neck feeling Cheryl relax underneath her.

Cheryl laid there on the bed satiated and tried to get her breathing under control. She felt Toni remove her fingers from inside her and opened her eyes watching as Toni licked her juices off her fingers.

“Oh my God,” Cheryl moaned, “That was hot. And nice.”

“Agreed,” Toni smirked.

“Your turn,” Cheryl said flipping them over, “You have way too many clothes on, TT.”

Toni was never one to be on the bottom, but she was more than willingly to let Cheryl top her.

Toni chuckled, “Well are you going to do something about it?”

In just a few seconds, Cheryl had basically ripped off the rest of Toni’s clothes. She was not in the mood for teasing and Toni had no complaints. She was horny as fuck.

Cheryl wasted no time in taking one of Toni’s breasts in her mouth, giving equal attention to the other as she made her way between Toni’s legs, leaving kisses all over her body. Toni knew she wasn’t going to last long. She was beyond turned on from making Cheryl come and was thankful Cheryl wasn’t in the mood to play games. A few seconds later and Cheryl was level with Toni’s core.

“Damn, Cher,” Toni moaned as she felt Cheryl’s tongue lapping at her folds. She definitely wasn’t going to last long.

Cheryl pumped one finger into Toni, before quickly adding another, feeling as Toni’s walls slowly began to pulse. She was happy she had trimmed her nails and removed her nail polish. It wasn’t like she had planned for her and Toni to be having sex by the end of the day, but she hadn’t gotten around to reapplying her signature nail color – instead spending her time playing video games with Toni and chatting.

“Shit, shit, shit,” Toni exhaled quickly, her breath becoming labored.

As soon as Cheryl began sucking on her clit, Toni’s body tensed and she was falling over the edge, her hands gripping red locks as pleasure coursed through her veins.

“Oh fuck!” Toni moaned loudly.

She could still feel Cheryl moving her fingers inside her and realized Cheryl wasn’t planning on giving her a break. Soon enough, Toni was teetering on the edge and being pushed into another orgasm, Cheryl moaning at the taste of Toni filling her mouth. Toni cried out Cheryl’s name over and over again as she rode out her high, the red-head finally slowly down her ministrations and meeting Toni’s face to connect their lips in a deep kiss.

“Holy fucking shit, Cher,” Toni groaned breathlessly, “That was fucking amazing.”

Cheryl placed her head on Toni’s chest, listening to the girl’s rapid heartbeat, “I just missed you. A lot.”

“We should break up more often if the reunion sex is going to be that mind-blowing.”

Cheryl scoffed, “No way in hell!”

Toni laughed as she rubbed Cheryl’s arm, trying to get her heartrate under control.

They both laid there wrapped in each other’s arms, each touch and caress filled with so much adoration and love for the other.

“I love you,” Toni whispered into Cheryl’s ear and placing a soft kiss against her cheek, “You’ve always had my heart.”

Cheryl’s eyes began to water. She didn’t deserve Toni, especially after everything that happened, but here she was. Here they were! Together, again.

“And you’ve always had mine, TT,” Cheryl responded, “You’ve always been the most important person in my life. And I’m never letting you go again.”

Toni smiled and pressed another kiss to Cheryl’s forehead, “Good, because honestly you never could. I’m here to stay.”

Cheryl smiled. This wasn’t one of those forced smiles she always wore around others to hide her true emotion. No, this was a genuine smile reserved only for the person who became her everything and was the only one who could truly make her happy. She didn’t know if she’d ever be able to feel like this again after taking her mother’s deal, but everything had worked out. Maybe not in the way that she had planned, but Toni hadn’t run in the opposite direction. She was here with Cheryl. They still had some things to talk about and figure out, but Cheryl was done living without Toni.

“I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Cheryl replied connecting their lips

Toni moved back on top of Cheryl deepening the kiss and smirking, “We have a lot more making up to do, Bombshell.”

Cheryl laughed as Toni made her way back down her body.

They spent the rest of the night re-acquainting themselves with each other’s bodies and falling asleep in each other’s arms, exactly where they belonged.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ;) Well there’s that my dudes. We’re on the up and up now! Three more chapters to go!
> 
> I’m thinking of doing another fic, mostly comprised of one-shots, of Choni’s roadtrip. Each chapter would be a specific place that they visited. I don’t have a lot figured out for the story, but would love to know if anyone would be interested in reading something like that!
> 
> Next update, Saturday/Sunday!


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Continuing from where we last left our favorite couple with a little flashback thrown into it!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is still partly flashback, but wanted to keep it in the present because it just flowed better that way. I think this is the longest chapter I’ve written so far, but maybe that was chapter 3? Idk. Anyway, hope you enjoy!

Toni woke up feeling a lot warmer than she usually did. She went to stretch out her limbs but realized she couldn’t move. Slowly opening her eyes she was met with a mess of red hair in her face. Cheryl was clinging to her tightly, her head resting right under her chin. The events of last night flooded Toni’s mind and she smiled at the memories of her and Cheryl taking the time to caress every inch of each other’s bodies over and over again. Her body was pleasantly sore from last night’s activities and she couldn’t remember the last time she had woken up this happy.

She began leaving feather-like kisses along Cheryl’s forehead trying to get the red-head to wake up. Toni felt bad for jostling the girl, but her arm that Cheryl was laying on had fallen asleep and it was becoming a bit painful. Cheryl slowly started to stir from her slumber and held Toni a little tighter. Toni chuckled remembering that Cheryl was always so clingy in the morning. She managed to free her arm from underneath Cheryl and began running her fingers through red locks.

“Morning sleepyhead,” Toni whispered.

“Mmmm,” Cheryl mumbled, nuzzling into Toni’s neck, “What time is it?”

Toni glanced at the alarm clock on the night stand, “A little past eleven.”

Cheryl released her grip from Toni’s midsection and rolled onto her back, stretching out her arms and legs, “I can’t remember the last time I slept so late. Only seems to happen when I’m around you.”

Toni laughed, “Sleeping in is good for the soul, Cher. You don’t always have to get up at ungodly hours.”

“One should not waste the day away, TT.”

“We’re in quarantine! There’s nothing to even do. I think you’ll be ok with sleeping in one day.”

“I guess you’re right,” Cheryl said looking at Toni and smiling, “Especially if it means I get to wake up next to you.

Toni smiled and leaned in to connect their lips in a chaste kiss. Every time she kissed Cheryl, she felt whole again. Her heart had shattered into pieces when they broke up, but during these last few weeks with Cheryl, her heart had slowly started to mend back together. She knew there were still some things that they needed to work on, but she wasn’t going to give up on them. The time apart was enough for Toni to realize that she couldn’t live without Cheryl in her life. She may have had her mom during the breakup before her passing, but she wished Cheryl had been by her side.

Cheryl snuggled back up to Toni, throwing her arm around the shorter girls waist. A few minutes of silence passed as Toni held Cheryl in her arms, occasionally playing with her hair.

“Do you regret it?” Cheryl whispered against Toni’s neck.

“Regret what?”

Cheryl took a moment to answer, “Last night.”

“God, no!” Toni said quickly, “I never want to leave this bed. I never want to leave you!”

Cheryl raised her head to look at Toni, seeing nothing but pure adoration on her face.

“Cher,” Toni said caressing her face, “I love you. Last night was…was just beyond fantastic and I would never regret being with you.”

Cheryl smiled and leaned in for a quick kiss, “I still don’t understand how you don’t hate me.”

Toni chuckled, “I could never hate you, Cher. Do I get annoyed with you? Sometimes.”

Cheryl scoffed.

“But, even after everything with our breakup, I was still so deeply in love with you. Plus, I was starting to put some of the pieces together. You broke up with me and then not a week later, my mom appeared out of nowhere. I didn’t know if the two were really connected until you told me last night, but I had my suspicions.”

Cheryl nodded and sat up on the bed, grabbing the sheets around her to keep herself warm. “I need to tell you one more thing,” she whispered looking down at her hands.

Toni knew that Cheryl was always so vulnerable right after sex, usually telling her everything that was on her mind. It was truly the only time Cheryl would let herself be so vulnerable. Toni was never one to push people, but last night might have been the exception. Was Toni a little impatient last night with Cheryl? Perhaps. But she’d waited seven months for Cheryl to tell her the truth. Chalk it up to their lack of communication, but one person could only take so much waiting.

Cheryl wasn’t a person who could easily talk about her feelings and usually waited until they started bubbling over and she’d just explode. Toni never pried during these kind of moments with Cheryl, understanding that the red-head was already putting herself in a very vulnerable state. When they were dating, it would take a few days for Cheryl to tell her what was really on her mind, but Cheryl would eventually open up to her. Now was not the time for Toni to push the girl any further. She’d gotten most of the answers to her burning questions about their breakup last night.

“Cher,” Toni said reaching for her hands, “You don’t have to. Your devil of a mother being the reason for our breakup is good enough for me. That woman is pure fucking evil.”

Cheryl laughed, “She is, but TT,” she looked up at Toni’s face, “It’s really important.”

Toni was still laying down and simply nodded her head, waiting for Cheryl to continue. She continued to rub her thumb along Cheryl’s knuckles, silently reassuring her that she could take all the time she needed.

“I met your mother,” Cheryl whispered.

“Wait, when?” Toni said surprised.

“A few days after Thanksgiving.”

“Ok…” Toni said softly, “What happened?”

Cheryl briefly closed her eyes and took a deep breath, remembering the day she had finally met Lydia Topaz.

* * *

_November 2019_

All Cheryl wanted to do was walk by Lydia Topaz’s hospital room. Just check on her to make sure everything was going well. To somehow make her feel better about her decision to break up with Toni. If she could just see that Toni’s mother was indeed responding well to her treatment, maybe her heart would heal. Maybe she’d stop hurting so much for giving up the best thing in her life. All she needed was validation that her choice to give Toni a chance to have a relationship with her mother was the right one.

This Thanksgiving had been hard for Cheryl. She and Nana Rose had sat in Thistlehouse’s dining room with way too much food for the two of them, eating in silence. It reminded her of the ones she had with her mother following her father and Jason’s death. There was no happiness involved with gathering around a table to share some extravagant meal. For the Blossoms, it was forced, a way for them to act like a normal family. But there was nothing normal about it. The meal was spent mostly in silence or Penelope Blossom making some snippy comment about Cheryl’s appearance or how she was eating.

It wasn’t until Toni came into her life that Cheryl really enjoyed Thanksgiving. Toni had told her that they didn’t need to make a show of having a fancy Thanksgiving meal. They just needed each other. Last Thanksgiving had been Cheryl’s favorite, eating way too much pizza and getting drunk off some random holiday punch recipe that Toni had found online. And it was one of the happiest moments in Cheryl’s life.

Now here she was, standing outside of Lydia Topaz’s hospital room. After her uneventful Thanksgiving holiday, she just wanted to feel something, to make her heart hurt less. She almost thought about going to find Toni, just to catch a glimpse of that pink-haired girl she still loved, but knew her mother was keeping a close eye on Toni. Cheryl couldn’t risk her mother sending Lydia back to jail and Toni once again being left with no one. So instead, she went to check on the woman who had given life to the girl she was so in love with, hoping that would put her in higher spirits.

As she peeked through the small window looking into Lydia Topaz’s room, Cheryl noticed the woman wasn’t in there. Of course her mind went to the worst case scenario, but the bed was unkempt and there were some takeout bags from Pop’s sitting on the small table in the room.

“Can I help you?”

Cheryl jumped at the strong voice from behind her and turned around. She was met with a woman slightly shorter than her with light brown skin and dark brown eyes, holding onto an IV pole. The woman was wearing a hospital gown and a light pink beanie on her head. She had a look on her face that reminded Cheryl of when Toni would get annoyed with her. This was obviously her mother, Lydia Topaz. It wasn’t that hard to see the resemblance.

“Sorry,” Cheryl said trying to come up with an excuse, “I must have gotten lost.”

Lydia simply shrugged and walked past Cheryl into her room. She stood by her bed and turned around to look at Cheryl who was awkwardly standing in the doorway, “Well, child. Are you going to help a sick little lady back into bed?”

Cheryl could have easily turned around and hightailed it out of the hospital, but this was Toni’s mother. Lydia was here because of the decision she had made. Besides, the whole point of her sneaking into the hospital was to check on the woman. She couldn’t just leave now.

“I may be sick, but I don’t have all the time in the world to just stand around,” Lydia chuckled.

Without a second thought, Cheryl nodded and went to help Toni’s mother back into bed, making sure that the woman was comfortable, “Can I get you anything?”

Lydia smiled, “I’m all good. Thanks for the help, Cheryl.”

Cheryl nodded again before realizing Toni’s mother had called her by her name, “How do you know my name?”

“I knew it was you as soon as I laid eyes on you.”

“But how?”

“My dear Antoinette won’t stop gushing about her drop dead gorgeous red-headed girlfriend. And something about having legs for days. Her words, not mine.”

Cheryl had a sad smile on her face as she looked down at the ground, “It’s ex-girlfriend.”

“Doesn’t seem like it from the way Antoinette talks about you.”

Cheryl’s heart broke a little at Lydia’s confession. How could Toni still feel anything but hate towards her after she ended things between them? There was no way Toni still cared that much about her, let alone would discuss their relationship with her mother. But then Cheryl remembered all the other times she had done something a tad bit crazy or had caused a little too much chaos. Sure Toni had shared a few tough words with her on such occasions, but then it was back to calm words and soft touches between them. Toni wasn’t an angry or hateful person, which was another reason why Cheryl loved her so much. She saw the good in people and was always willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

“So what did happen between you and my daughter?” Lydia asked with a raised brow.

Cheryl was trying to hold in her emotions, but a few tears slipped past her eyes. She quickly wiped them away, “It’s complicated.”

She didn’t know why she had decided to stay and tell Lydia about her relationship with Toni. But there was just something so familiar about Lydia Topaz that made Cheryl feel safe. Made her feel like she could tell this woman anything. Just like Toni.

“What’s complicated about two people in love?”

“Certain obstacles getting in the way of that love,” she wasn’t willing to tell Lydia the main reason was her horrid mother.

Lydia nodded her head, “Obstacles are designed to make you stronger, not keep you from your goals and definitely not away from those you love. Everyone goes through a rough patch in their relationship. But love perseveres.”

She watched Cheryl wipe away a few more tears before making eye contact with her again.

“I may not have had the best relationship or done a good job of raising my daughter, but there wasn’t one day that I didn’t go without missing her and loving her. I honestly don’t deserve this second chance with Antoinette, but after everything that we’ve both been through, she’s giving me the chance to have a relationship with her. And I’ll do everything I can to restore and protect that love. You should too.”

Cheryl was crying now, no longer caring about the tears that fell down her cheeks, “You make it sound so easy.”

“Oh, child, there’s nothing easy about it. Relationships aren’t one-sided. Both of you have to put in the work to overcome whatever these obstacles are. Communicate. But never forget, that you love each other.”

Cheryl wiped away the tears from her face, listening to the words Lydia had just spoken. So this was where Toni got her superb pep talks from. The similarities were uncanny. It felt like she was talking to Toni herself. Her decision to come by the hospital had been the right one. She still missed Toni like crazy, but Lydia had helped fill part of the void in her heart.

“I think I should go, before someone catches me in here,” Cheryl said hastily, wiping more tears from her face and flattening out the wrinkles in her red skirt.

“Are you not allowed to be visiting random strangers in the hospital?” Lydia asked sarcastically.

“If my mother finds out that I’m here, it wouldn’t be good. For either of us.”

“And why is that?”

“She’s…” Cheryl took a second to think of the right way to describe her mother, “Particular about certain things in my life.”

“I think you mean demanding. Maybe manipulative?” Lydia chuckled, “Sounds like a shitty person.”

Cheryl laughed. She hadn’t laughed in months, but the words that fell from Lydia’s mouth had sounded like something Toni would have said.

“She is the devil incarnate. Believe me, you do not want to meet that woman.”

Lydia laughed and settled more into her bed.

“It was nice to meet you Ms. Topaz and thanks for our little chat. It’s given me some things to think about.”

Cheryl turned her back to Lydia and began making her way towards the door.

“Can you answer one more question for me before you leave?” Lydia murmured.

Cheryl turned around but stayed standing in the doorway, “Of course,” she could tell that Lydia was slowly starting to fall asleep.

“Do you still love my daughter?”

She hadn’t been expecting that question, but she gave her answer without having to think about it, “Unequivocally.”

Lydia smiled and closed her eyes, “Then there’s nothing to worry about, Cheryl. Everything will work out. Love has a way of bringing two people who are meant to be back together.”

Cheryl felt a few tears pricking at her eyes again. She wished things were different and she could have met Toni’s mother some other way, but her last words resonated with Cheryl. If she and Toni were meant to be together, they’d find their way back. Toni Topaz had her heart. Now and forever.

* * *

_Present_

“And that was the last time I saw her. I couldn’t bring myself to go back. She reminded me too much of you,” Cheryl said taking in a long breath.

Toni sat up from the bed and cupped Cheryl’s face, bringing her in for a sweet kiss, “I’m happy that you met her before she passed.”

“I’m so sorry, TT,” Cheryl said, trying not to cry.

“For what?” Toni said, moving some hair from Cheryl’s face and caressing her cheek.

“For not being there for you after she was gone. I should have known. I should have come up with a plan to pay for your mother’s treatment. I could have done something!”

“Cher,” Toni said softly, “It’s ok. Did it hurt that you weren’t there? Yeah, but I don’t hate you. This wasn’t your fault. It was your mom’s. I don’t blame you for the things you did to separate us. I should thank you.”

“Why? I ruined us.”

Toni chuckled, “Quite the opposite, Bombshell. You brought my mom back into my life even for just a few months. I got to tell her about my life and the amazing girl who I had hopelessly fell in love with. _You_ gave me that second chance with her.”

Cheryl felt a few tears escape her eyes and watched as Toni leaned in to wipe them away.

“The only thing I wanted was for you to meet her. And I’m so happy that you did.”

Cheryl scooted closer to Toni so she could rest her forehead against the other’s, “You’re too good for this world, Toni. And I don’t deserve you.”

“You deserve the world Cheryl Blossom. You sacrificed our love so I could have another,” Toni kissed Cheryl’s forehead before looking into her eyes, “But I swear to God, Cheryl, if you do that again, I will kick your ass.”

Cheryl laughed knowing full well that Toni meant it, “Never again, my love.”

“Everything is starting to make a lot more sense though.”

“What are you talking about?”

Toni took a deep breath, “At the beginning of December, my mom kept telling me to fight. To fight for what I loved and who I loved. I didn’t quite understand why all of a sudden she kept pushing this topic on me. But it came up every time I went to see her. The night before she passed, she made me promise to keep fighting. To keep fighting for us, Cheryl. And so, that’s what I did. Well, I tried at least. You kept dodging me every time I walked towards you.”

“I’m sorry it took me so long, TT.”

“Cheryl,” Toni chuckled, “Stop saying you’re sorry. We both could have done better. I should have fought harder for you, instead of just avoiding you. I’m at fault here too. Please don’t blame yourself for everything that has happened.”

“It’s hard not to.”

Toni caressed Cheryl’s cheek, “Please don’t. All that matters now, is that we still love each other and we’re back together.”

“Soooo,” Cheryl said cautiously, “What are we exactly? Dating? Girlfriends?”

Toni laughed, “We can be whatever you want, babe. But I do think that we need to take things slow. We don’t have to be anything official, but I am never letting you out of my life again.”

Cheryl smiled and pushed Toni back against the mattress, bringing her in for a deep kiss, “I love you.”

“Love you too, Cher. Now get back to kissing me.”

Cheryl did as told and pressed her body against Toni’s as she continued kissing her. Their tongues fought for dominance, but Cheryl quickly relented. Next thing she knew, Toni had flipped them over and she was laying on her back.

“TT,” Cheryl moaned as Toni peppered kisses along her jawline and down her throat, “Please.”

Toni smirked, “I’m getting there, babe,” she slowly continued kissing and nipping at Cheryl’s skin, making her way down to where Cheryl wanted her. As soon as she was about to make contact with Cheryl’s core, the bedroom door banged open.

“T! You need to settle this,” Sweet Pea yelled.

“You just suck, dude!” Fangs replied.

Cheryl yelped at the sudden intrusion as Toni quickly made her way out from under the sheets. She did her best to cover herself and shield Cheryl from her two friends.

“Oh, shit!” Sweet Pea screamed, looking between Toni and Cheryl who had now pulled the comforter over her head.

“What the fuck, guys!” Toni yelled, “Get out! Now!”

“Well, well, well,” Fangs said smirking and leaning against the doorframe, “So this is what you were doing last night. Sorry, _who_ , you were doing.”

“Get the fuck out!” Toni yelled again, reaching for a book on the nightstand and hurling it at Sweet Pea and Fangs.

The book collided with the door as the two boys quickly slammed it shut. Toni couldn’t wait for quarantine to be over so people could stop interrupting them.

“Oh my God,” Toni said covering her face, “Cher, I am so sorry.”

Cheryl didn’t move or say anything.

“Cher?” Toni said hesitatingly as she pulled the comforter down from Cheryl’s face.

Cheryl broke out laughing, looking up at a very surprised Toni.

That was not the response Toni had been expecting, but seeing Cheryl in a fit of laughter brought a smile to her face. She began laughing herself, seeing the boys’ interruption as pretty hilarious.

“You know, they’ve probably blabbed to the entire house by now,” Toni said caressing Cheryl’s cheek.

Cheryl shrugged, “I don’t mind. Do you?”

Toni smiled, “Not one bit.”

She leaned down to press a quick kiss to Cheryl’s lips, but Cheryl quickly began to deepen it, wanting to pick up where they had left off.

_I've been really tryin', baby_

_Tryin' to hold back this feeling for so long_

_And if you feel like I feel, baby_

_Then, c'mon, oh, c'mon_

Toni broke the kiss once she heard the music playing outside of the bedroom door, “Cut it out you assholes!” she yelled.

_Let's get it on_

_Ah, baby, let's get it on_

Toni huffed in annoyance as she looked down at Cheryl who was back to laughing, “I’m so going to kick their asses later.”

“I know you are, mon amour,” Cheryl said, moving a piece of Toni’s hair behind her ear, “I think that’s our cue to get up and ready for the day. Well, at least what’s left of it anyway.”

Toni groaned, “But I just want to stay in bed with you all day.”

“TT, we need to eat something.”

“I mean, I was about to before those two idiots walked in.”

Cheryl slapped Toni’s arm playfully, “Get your mind out of the gutter. I’m being serious. I’m starving.”

Toni laughed as she sat up from the bed, “Ok, ok. We can go get food.”

“Excellent!” Cheryl said sitting up and leaning in to whisper something in Toni’s ear, “And besides, we can pick up where we left off later tonight.”

Toni shivered at Cheryl’s words, as the girl stood up in all her naked glory and stretched her arms. She went over to Toni’s duffle bag and began rummaging through it.

“You do know your room is just next door,” Toni said watching Cheryl with an amused look.

“But your clothes are just so much comfier. Plus, they smell like you.”

Toni chuckled as Cheryl continued to go through her bag.

A few seconds later Cheryl pulled out an old band shirt and some joggers. As she held onto the clothes, something on the floor caught her eye. She picked it up thinking it was a crumpled piece of paper, but when she unfolded it, her eyes went wide, “You kept it.”

“What?” Toni said, coming to stand behind Cheryl.

In Cheryl’s hands was the black and white photo Toni had taken of her sitting on Santa Monica beach. It must have fallen out of her Serpent jacket when they got home last night. Toni loved that photo – a constant reminder of the most important person in her life.

“I told you I’d keep it forever,” Toni said sweetly, wrapping her arms around Cheryl’s waist, “I’ve never gone anywhere without it.

“You’re such a sap Toni Topaz.”

“I’m your sap,” Toni said, pressing a kiss to Cheryl’s bare shoulder.

“That you are. I’m going to head in and take a quick shower.”

“You want some company?” Toni asked with a smirk.

“You’re more than welcome to join,” Cheryl said opening the bathroom door and giving Toni a pointed look, “But no funny business!”

“I’ll try my best.”

“You better.”

Some funny business did in fact ensue. Toni found it hard to keep her hands to herself around Cheryl. Cheryl had protested at first but had quickly giving in. They were thankful there weren’t any interruptions. Two orgasms later, they were dressed and walking hand in hand down to the kitchen for sustenance.

Upon entering the kitchen, their friends were all there applauding and cheering making Cheryl roll her eyes. Toni stalked over to Sweet Pea and Fangs sitting at the kitchen table and punched both of them in the shoulder.

“It’s about damn time!” Josie exclaimed.

“Choni’s back!!!” Kevin yelled excitedly, “Totally called it!”

Toni returned to Chery’s side who instantly reached for her hand again and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

“I’m so happy for you guys,” Betty said smiling.

“Ditto,” Veronica added, “This is definitely cause for celebrations tonight.”

“Please nothing like the last one,” Cheryl said, “I don’t think my liver could take that.”

Veronica waved her hand in the air dismissively, “I’ll figure something out. Just happy to see my favorite power couple back together.” She gave them another smile before leaving the room with Archie.

After their not so subtle announcement that they were somewhat back together, the house went back to normal. No one asked them about what had broken them up in the first place, thinking that was something they would share on their own time. Everyone was just happy that the two lovebirds were back together. The longing stares and somewhat flirty antics were starting to wear on everyone. But now that the truth was out, the gang was going to be in for a much worse ride. If anything, the PDA between Cheryl and Toni was going to triple.

As Toni went about making them some food, pancakes at Cheryl’s request, Sweet Pea walked over to where Cheryl was sitting on a stool at the kitchen island.

“Hey, Cheryl,” Sweet Pea said warily, rubbing the back of his neck, “Can I talk to you real quick?”

“I’m busy,” Cheryl answered as she continued watching Toni move about the kitchen and mix up the pancake batter.

Sweet Pea shifted his gaze to Toni hoping she’d help him out. Toni gave him a stern look trying to be subtle, but Cheryl had already noticed.

“It’ll only take a minute,” Sweet Pea pressed.

“Fine,” Cheryl relented. She stood from her seat and walked towards the backyard for some privacy, Sweet Pea right behind her.

Cheryl turned to look at Sweet Pea as he shut the clear glass door behind him.

“Look,” he said, still rubbing the back of his neck, “I’m sorry for yelling at you the other day. I was just trying to protect my family. To protect Toni after everything she’s been through.”

Cheryl crossed her arms and gave Sweet Pea an annoyed look, “Are you only apologizing to me because Toni threatened to do some kind of bodily harm to you?”

“Partly, but I was being a complete asshole. You’re my family too Cheryl. I lost sight of that after you and T broke up. And I’m sorry about that. I should have been there for you like I was for Toni.”

“All is forgiven, Green Giant,” Cheryl said sincerely.

“It is?” Sweet Pea said surprisingly. He was expecting Cheryl to rip him a new one and go off on how rude and how pea-brained he was. But she didn’t.

“I understand that you were just looking out for her and I appreciate that,” Cheryl took a deep breath before continuing, “After everything I did to break us up, I’m thankful she had you and Fangs there to support her. I’m grateful to you. You were there for her when I wasn’t.”

“I’m just happy that you fixed things, Red. She really missed you.”

“I missed her too. More than I ever thought I would. I was so dumb for letting her go in the first place.”

“Just don’t do it again or I’ll have some words for you.”

Cheryl laughed, “Believe me, that’s never going to happen again.”

Sweet Pea smiled, “I’ll let you guys enjoy your food now. You both probably worked up an appetite with all your…activities last night and this morning.” He winked at Cheryl and went to go hang out with Fangs.

Cheryl made her way back to her seat just as Toni set a plate of pancakes in front of her.

“What was that about, babe?” Toni asked, setting a bowl of fruit next to Cheryl’s plate and taking a seat next to her.

“Like you don’t know,” Cheryl scoffed.

Toni chuckled, “He needed some sense knocked into him.”

“Well, thank you,” Cheryl said, reaching out for Toni’s hand and squeezing it, “I love you.”

“Love you too,” Toni said smiling and pressing a kiss to Cheryl’s cheek, “Now, let’s eat. I really am starving.”

Cheryl laughed and started digging into her food. They held hands the entire time, not wanting to let each other go.

* * *

The rest of the day went by smoothly. It was kind of a lazy day for everyone in the house and no one was complaining. Toni challenged Cheryl to another game of Mario Party, hellbent on beating her this time. One hour later and Cheryl was still the reigning champion. Despite not winning, Toni was over the moon. She had her girl back.

By the end of the night, after everyone had eaten way too many burgers, Josie and Archie serenaded the group with a mini concert. Cheryl was happy for the change of pace in the house and that Veronica hadn’t pushed to throw a rager. Josie sang a few of her new songs with Archie playing the guitar and then went to some covers, letting everyone join in. Cheryl was cuddled up next to Toni on one of the couches, Toni’s arm draped across her shoulders keeping her warm.

Cheryl was finally feeling happy again. Her mother was finally out of her life for good and Toni was back in it. Throughout the day, she had listened to Toni come up with ideas on how to get her revenge on Penelope Blossom. Cheryl knew Toni was joking, but it was still funny to indulge the girl in her plans. Her mother would get what was coming to her eventually. But for now, Cheryl never wanted this moment to end. Snuggling up next to the one she loved was the perfect feeling. Her heart was whole again, and it was all because Toni Topaz was right where she was supposed to be. With her and forever by her side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those who didn’t know the song, it’s Let’s Get It On by Marvin Gaye haha. I really enjoyed writing this chapter. It might be my favorite. I always set out to have a scene where Cheryl met Toni’s mother because why wouldn’t she? If you had done everything to get your girlfriend/boyfriend/significant other’s parent back into their life, wouldn’t you be curious to see what they were like? I sure as hell would. Plus, I wanted them to meet and not make Cheryl feel like she had done the worst thing ever by breaking up with Toni.
> 
> Thanks for reading! Two more chapters to go! Check back Tuesday/Wednesday for the next chapter!


	19. Chapter 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Flashback of Toni and her mom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m just going to forewarn everyone and say that this chapter is a bit sad. But we're basically at the end and I wanted to finish up some of these storylines I created. SORRY IN ADVANCE!

_December 2019_

Christmas had been different this year for Toni. She hadn’t spent it curled up on the couch in Thistlehouse with Cheryl and Nana Rose, opening gifts in front of the fireplace. Instead, she and the boys spent the day in the hospital with her mom, telling stories from their youth; Sweet Pea and Fangs giving Lydia all the juicy details of some of Toni’s more embarrassing moments. Despite not being with the girl she was still crazy in love with, Toni’s Christmas was better than she could have imagined. She was surrounded by her knucklehead friends, who were basically her family, and her mom that she had finally been reunited with.

Unfortunately, since the beginning of December, Lydia’s health had been declining. Toni had tried her best to keep a strong face around her mom, but update after update from the doctor wasn’t helping to lift her spirits. Nevertheless, she didn’t let that stop her from going all out at Christmas. She and the boys had managed to sneak a small Christmas tree into her mom’s room and decorated it with all sorts of random ornaments and colorful lights. Lydia thought it was over the top, but thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of it. There wasn’t a lot of gift giving, but no one seemed to mind – everyone more interested in exchanging stories. But there was still one present that Toni wanted to give her mom that she hadn’t found by the time Christmas had come.

It was now a few days after Christmas and Toni found herself walking through the halls of Riverdale General to see her mom. She had a takeout bag from Pop’s in one hand and the present she had finally found in the other. Given that it was a very heavy present, Toni had somehow managed to fit it in an old suitcase that she could carry around. A nurse had stopped her along the way to tell Toni about her mom’s mini adventures around the hospital. Lydia wasn’t supposed to be roaming the hallways, but Toni knew her mom would do whatever the hell she wanted despite the rules. Maybe that’s where she got her stubbornness from. As she approached her mom’s room, the doctor was there to meet her. By the look on her face, Toni knew she wasn’t about to hear any good news.

“Miss Topaz,” the doctor greeted.

“Doc,” Toni responded, placing her mom’s gift on the floor, “What’s up?”

The doctor hesitated for a minute, flipping through the chart in her hand, “Ummm, Miss Topaz…”

Before the doctor could continue, Toni already knew the response she was about to get. She zoned out as the doctor relayed some medical mumbo jumbo from her mom’s chart. Something about low white blood cell count, chemo treatment not working as expected, and doing all that they could. Toni had thought her mom was on the up and up, but since the beginning of the month, it was just one bad report after the other. But she was still holding out hope that her mom would make a miraculous recovery. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

Toni took a deep breath trying not to get too emotional, “How long?”

The doctor looked at her with sympathy in her eyes, “We don’t think she’ll make it through the night.”

Toni simply nodded her head, realizing she just had a few more hours left with her mom as it was already 6PM.

“Thanks Doc,” Toni said with a sad smile, “For everything you’ve done for her.”

The doctor returned her smile, “I wish we could have done more. I’ll leave you two alone, now. Please let me know if there’s anything I can do for you.”

Toni nodded again and picked up her mom’s present before entering her room. Lydia was asleep as Toni made her way to the small table in the room. She opened up the suitcase and removed the old record player that she had dug up from her Uncle’s trailer. She set the record player and the record on the table and moved to plug in the lights on Christmas tree.

“Well, what do we have here?” Lydia asked quietly.

Toni turned around as her mom started to wake up. She grabbed the bag from Pop’s and went to stand next to her mom’s bed, pulling the overbed table with her, “One cheeseburger and fries from Pop’s,” Toni said, placing the food on the table.

Lydia hummed in happiness as she took in the greasy smell of the food, but she made no move to open the bag.

“You know, you’ve been eating this food non-stop. You should at least have a salad every now and then,” Toni joked, trying to lighten her mood.

Lydia scoffed, “I’ve been eating shit food in prison for the last two years. I can sure as hell eat whatever the fuck I want now.”

Toni laughed and opened the bag for her mom setting it out in front of her, “On another note, one of the nurses stopped me and said you were still sneaking out of your room.”

“I get bored being stuck in this room. I need a change of scenery.”

Toni nodded in understanding and kept pushing the food around on the table. She was trying her best to keep a strong face, hoping her mom couldn’t see her reaction. Now was not the time for her to lose control of her emotions, but it was hard. She wasn’t ready to lose another person. First her dad, then her mother at a young age, Cheryl, and now her mother again. She should be used to people leaving her life, but she wasn’t. Who would be? She still had the gang, Sweet Pea, and Fangs, but those relationships were vastly different from the one she had with Cheryl and the one she had recently built with her mom.

Her relationship with Cheryl was something she had never experienced before. Sure, she had the occasional hookup, but Cheryl had been her first real relationship and she had been terrified. She wasn’t sure she could give Cheryl the love she needed or even wanted. Toni didn’t believe she was even worthy enough to be dating such an amazing person. But Cheryl had shown her that she deserved to be loved just like everyone else and that it was ok to be vulnerable. She didn’t have to put on that badass and tough exterior she used around the boys and the gang. Toni could just be that cliché teenage girl, head over heels in love.

Then along came the re-emergence of Lydia Topaz. Toni’s first reaction was to avoid her mom after FP had found her at the hospital, but her curiosity had gotten the best of her. Not to mention she was still mending a broken heart a week after Cheryl had broken up with her. But the moment she had stepped into that hospital room, she rushed to her mother’s side and collapsed in her arms, crying. Her mom hadn’t asked any questions as Toni cried in her arms, only stroking her hair and doing her best to soothe her. It wasn’t until a month after visiting, that her mom had pressed her for answers, which led Toni to explain her whole relationship with Cheryl. In return, her mom answered all her questions about disappearing from her life.

Toni should have been angry about her mom basically abandoning her, but she couldn’t bring herself to feel that way. She didn’t know if it was because there was a giant hole in her heart due to her and Cheryl breaking up, but all she wanted was for it to be filled again. And over the past couple of months, her mom helped her to heal. Her mom became that person who filled her empty heart. But now she was terrified. She wasn’t ready to lose her mom and have that giant hole in her heart return.

“I can see you thinking,” Lydia said, trying her best to sit up in her bed, “I know it’s not good. The doctor had the same expression on her face when she came to talk to me earlier.”

“I don’t want to talk about that now,” Toni said sadly looking at her mom.

Lydia smiled, “I’m just happy to have spent this time with you, Antoinette.”

Toni tried to hold back her tears, but a few of them escaped and slid down her face. It wasn’t fair that she was about to lose another person she loved. Why did the world hate her?

Toni wiped the tears away with the sleeve of her Serpent jacket and sniffled a little before doing her best to put on a smile, “I brought you something. A late Christmas gift.”

“You didn’t need to bring me anything else, sweetheart.”

Toni walked over to the other table by the Christmas tree and plugged in the record player to the outlet, placing the record she had brought on the platter of the turntable. Lydia tried to see what Toni was messing with, but it was the melodious tunes that got her attention.

_Baby, baby, baby don't leave me_

_Ooh, please don't leave me all by myself_

_I've got this burning, burning, yearning feelin' inside me_

_Ooh, deep inside me and it hurts so bad_

“I didn’t know you still had this,” Lydia said, listening to the familiar song.

Toni walked back over to her mom as the music continued to fill the room, “I could never part with it. It held some of the best memories I have with you.”

Lydia hummed along to the song as Toni quietly sang the lyrics. It felt just like the other times they had listened to this record in their old trailer. The memories began to flood Toni’s mind as she watched her mom hum to the song. Lydia would belt out the lyrics to The Supremes and pick Toni up so they could dance around the kitchen. Toni remembered how she’d squeal in excitement as her mom whirled her around and kissed her face with light kisses. It was one of Toni’s favorite memories of them together.

“Help me up, I want to dance like old times,” Lydia said, pushing the table tray away from herself and trying to get up from the bed.

Toni was quick to gently stop her mom, but Lydia wasn’t having any of it, “Mom, I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”

Her mom wasn’t in the best state right now to be moving around. She was very lethargic and frail. Toni was worried she’d hurt herself.

“Antoinette,” Lydia pleaded, “Please, do this one thing for me. I know I don’t have that much time left.”

A few more tears escaped Toni’s eyes as she relented and helped her mom stand up from the bed. She supported most of her mom’s weight and used the side of the bed to keep her upright. They slowly swayed back and forth to the music for a few minutes, Lydia’s head falling against Toni’s shoulder.

“Promise me, Antoinette,” Lydia said softly, “That you’ll surround yourself with people you love. That you won’t waste your life pushing people away.”

“I have the gang, Mom. I’ll be ok.”

“I’m not talking about them. I want you to have someone outside of that.”

Toni knew what her mom was alluding to. Or the person her mom was thinking about. It was Cheryl. Over the past few months, Toni had told her mom everything about Cheryl and their swift breakup. She told her mom about their first encounter at a dumb drag race and how attractive Cheryl looked up in her getup. Then there were the stories about their little exchange in the hallways of Riverdale High and their somewhat, not really, date at the movies. From there, Toni couldn’t stop gushing about Cheryl and all their adventures. The red-head had become such a huge part of her life and there wasn’t a day that went by that she didn’t think about her.

But after their breakup, Cheryl didn’t want anything to do with her. At least, that’s the message Toni was receiving from her. She avoided Toni at school and didn’t even glance her way. Toni wasn’t quite sure how Cheryl could just walk away from what they had so easily. It felt like they had never been in a relationship and were just complete strangers to one another. So how could she possibly get the love of her life back if she acted like Toni didn’t even exist?

“You know that’s not going to work out,” Toni murmured.

Lydia smiled against Toni’s shoulder. She still hadn’t told her daughter about Cheryl’s unexpected visit after Thanksgiving, but she knew these two were meant for each other. If she could get her stubborn daughter to just see that and convince her to keep fighting, she knew they’d get back together after she was gone. It was a mother’s duty to look out for her children and provide for them. She may not have done the best job over the course of Toni’s life, but she wasn’t about to let her daughter down again. Cheryl still loved Toni and Lydia just needed Toni to stop sulking and go chase after her girl.

"Just promise me that you’ll keep fighting,” Lydia said as they continued to sway to the music.

“I don’t know if I can. It’s not that easy and too much time has passed.”

“It’s never too late to fight for the ones you love. Don’t give up on love, Antoinette. I know that girl is very important to you by the way you always talk about her.”

“She’s the most important person in my life,” Toni confessed, “Besides you of course.”

Lydia chuckled, “Then fight for her. You deserve love, my dear. Don’t ever forget that. Promise me that you’ll keep fighting and you’ll never stop until she’s back in your life.”

“I will,” Toni replied. She knew her mom was right. Cheryl was too important to her not to keep fighting. She hadn’t even tried when she walked out of Thistlehouse and she hated herself for it ever since. There was no way Cheryl would have thrown away a year and half of them for no reason. No matter how hard Cheryl ignored her presence, she was going to fight. She was going to fight for them.

“I think I’m ready to lie back down,” Lydia said, slouching a little more against Toni.

Toni quickly helped her mom back into bed, pulling the bed sheets up to her neck, and making sure she was comfortable. Lydia was still slightly humming to the music as her eyes began to close again.

“I’ll keep the record playing until you fall asleep,” Toni said shakily as a few more tears fell down her face.

“I love you, Antoinette,” Lydia spoke softly, “Just keep fighting.”

Toni leaned down and kissed her mom’s forehead, “I promise. I love you, Mom.”

Lydia Topaz passed away in her sleep later that night, surrounded by her daughter and their memories of Motown music playing in the background. From that moment on, Toni was going to fight for Cheryl. To get her back anyway that she could and fulfill her promise to her mom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry! I just wanted to bring it full circle with Toni’s mom and her love for The Supremes and Toni getting the encouragement she needed to keep fighting for Cheryl. Tried my best to not make it too sad, but ultimately it is.
> 
> Anyway, last chapter will be up Saturday! I really, REALLY appreciate everyone for sticking with this!


	20. Chapter 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minor time jump. July 4th to be exact.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s the last chapter! Sorry that it’s short, but hope you enjoy it nonetheless!

As the months flew by, everyone was doing pretty well considering the pandemic was still in full swing. They all graduated virtually from Riverdale High at the end of May and celebrated with a late night party that ended up with everyone drunkenly swimming in the pool in their undergarments. But it was definitely everyone’s favorite memory of 2020 so far.

Toni eventually convinced Cheryl to go out on Veronica’s boat one weekend. Cheryl stuck to Toni’s side the entire time and mostly stayed inside the boat’s cabin while everyone else swam in the ocean. She thought she’d be more terrified, but with Toni there, she was pretty relaxed. They ended up going a few more times, and Cheryl eventually made it out on the boat deck to watch everyone splash around in the water. She still wasn’t comfortable to jump in with the rest of them, but she was just happy to be surrounded by her friends and the love of her life.

Over the following weeks, Toni and Cheryl slowly started to become familiar again with each other’s habits. It wasn’t too hard for them, considering how they could never forget the other. A month after Cheryl explaining everything to Toni about their breakup, they were officially back together. There was no rush for them to put a label on their relationship, but they still took the time to woo each other again and get back to what they had. Neither of them were going to let anyone or anything separate them again.

After getting back together, Toni and Cheryl decided to tell everyone else in the house about Penelope’s evil ploy that had separated them, which led to a lot of threats against her being thrown around and everyone planning a witch-hunt. The two girls laughed at their friends antics and were just glad to know they had some amazing people in their corner to watch their backs. Ultimately, everyone was just happy the two were back together and Penelope hadn’t succeeded in officially ruining them.

The two of them fell back into their relationship-y ways, giving each other heart eyes whenever they could and sticking to each other’s side. Sweet Pea and Fangs always made gagging noises every time Toni and Cheryl said or did anything cute, while Kevin was ready to just throw them the ultimate wedding. Nothing mattered to the two girls except each other. After the months spent apart, they didn’t want to go anywhere without the other.

Following their newly established relationship status, Toni eventually had to put a sock on her door so that Fangs and Sweet Pea would stop interrupting her and Cheryl’s more intimate moments in the bedroom. Why the Lodge’s didn’t have locks on their bedroom doors, she still didn’t understand. Despite her best friends’ interruptions, they made it a point to tell her that they were glad she and Cheryl were back together. After spending a lot more time with the red-head during quarantine, Sweet Pea and Fangs finally understood how important Cheryl was to Toni and the love that they shared. They didn’t want to get in the way of that and promised to protect them from anyone who tried to tear them apart. Toni knew they were mostly referring to Penelope, but she was grateful for their brotherly protection nonetheless.

Cheryl and Toni took the last few weeks to work on their communication and making sure everything was out in the open. They were ready for a fresh start and didn’t want to have any more secrets between them. The days were spent catching each other up on everything that happened over their time apart. Cheryl listened intently as Toni talked about her mother and the relationship she was able to build before her passing.

Toni was thankful that Cheryl was willing to give up their relationship so she could have one with her mom and continuously reassured Cheryl that she hadn’t made the worst decision ever. But, she was even more grateful that they had found their way back to each other. Cheryl, on the other hand, told Toni all about her mission to redecorate Thistlehouse and how Nana Rose’s health was doing. She promised Toni they could FaceTime her sometime in the following days if the caretaker could figure out how to work an iPad. They had these little conversations every now and then, reveling in the company of each other.

It was currently July 4th and the crew was preparing for an all-out bash that night. They weren’t going to be able to have the Riverdale July 4th parade they were all accustomed to, but their small get together was the best they could do given the circumstances. Everyone was really looking forward to this fantastic night as this was going to be the last party they’d all spend together before going their separate ways. The group had begun to plan their trips back to Riverdale to give them some time to prepare for college. Some of their schools had implemented a hybrid format, offering courses online and in person, while others had been shifted to an all virtual format. Nevertheless, everyone was excited to begin the next chapter of their lives.

Toni and Cheryl, on the other hand, weren’t in a hurry to get back to Riverdale. They planned to stay in California for as long as they could, before returning back home. California held so many memories for them – some of their road trip adventures and the place they had fallen in love with each other. The two of them wanted to relive those moments and create new ones to make up for all the lost time. Veronica had graciously told them that they could stay in the mansion for as long as possible and her driver would take them to the airport whenever they were ready to leave. They couldn’t wait for everyone to go back home so it could be just the two of them.

The house was busy with activity as everyone prepared for their 4th of July party. Kevin and Josie were back to hanging up fairy lights and decorating the backyard while Archie, Jughead, and the other Serpents were off commandeering fireworks. Or contraband, as Veronica liked to call it. She was more concerned with them burning down the mansion than actually having the fireworks on the property.

As soon as Toni made it back to the Lodge mansion with the boys, Cheryl was right by her side. They went to work setting up the fireworks in the back of the house while everyone else prepared dinner. It took the two of them a little longer to set everything up because they kept stealing kisses from each other. Jughead and Betty eventually had to take over because the two girls couldn’t keep their hands to themselves.

By the time the sun began to set against the Los Angeles sky, everyone was dancing along to the music coming from the outdoor speakers and sipping on a few drinks. Cheryl made sure to pace herself as she did not want to wake up with another hangover. But she was also thankful for all that greasy food she had consumed earlier. Everyone was waiting for the sun to completely disappear before setting off the fireworks, which Archie had been volunteered to start. Veronica was still hesitant about setting them off if her backyard, but everyone assured her that nothing was going to burn down, as long as Sweet Pea and Fangs stayed away from them.

An hour later and everyone was ready for the fireworks show to begin. As the crew made their way to the patio area, far enough away from the fireworks, Toni grabbed Cheryl’s hand and led them out of the backyard.

“TT!” Cheryl giggled, she was slightly tipsy, but nowhere near drunk, “Where are we going?”

“Just come on,” Toni responded happily as she led Cheryl away.

Cheryl smiled as she followed Toni to the place that had become their spot during quarantine, the Lodge’s garden. They had spent a lot of time in the garden just talking and getting away from the rest of the group. It was a place for them to escape and be just them without interruptions; the place where they decided to become Toni and Cheryl again, to become girlfriends. It was their own little paradise away from the craziness of the pandemic.

They made their way to the white bench in the garden and sat down. The music from the backyard was faint as they gazed into each other’s eyes, the only light coming from the moon and stars above them. It reminded Toni of the night at Venice Beach when they first confessed their love to one another.

_I guess what I'm sayin', I guess what I'm sayin'_

_I guess what I'm sayin' is, I_

_I fuckin' love you_

“So where do we go from here?” Cheryl said, playing with Toni’s hand.

“We can do whatever we want, Cher. As long as it’s together,” Toni brought Cheryl’s hand to her lips and kissed the back of it.

“But what about college?” Cheryl said worried.

“What about it?” Toni asked confused. She wasn’t quite sure where Cheryl was taking this conversation.

Cheryl took a deep breath, “The distance, ma cherie. You’re going to NYU and I’m going to High Smith. They’re not exactly down the road from one another.”

“I’m not going to lie and say it’ll be easy,” Toni replied, “It’s going to be tough, but we can do this.”

Cheryl gave her a small smile, still not completely convinced.

“And look at what’s happening now,” Toni continued, “This pandemic isn’t stopping any time soon and NYU isn’t opening up their campus for the first semester or probably for the entire year.”

Cheryl seemed to perk up at that, “So you don’t have to move to city at the end of summer?”

Toni shook her head, “Nope! So you’re stuck with me for a little longer!”

Cheryl leaned in and placed a sweet kiss against Toni’s lips, “Does that mean you’ll move back into Thistlehouse?”

"If you want me to,” Toni said, “But just saying, I don’t think I could go without sleeping next to you when we get back to Riverdale.”

Cheryl smiled, “Won’t you move in? I’m cuckoo bananas for you, obvi.”

“You don’t have to ask me twice,” Toni said, resting her forehead against Cheryl’s, “You’re it for me, Cheryl Blossom.”

_Love you through the better days_

_Love you through the rainy ones_

_Champion, you're number one, yeah, that's true_

“Are we going to be okay?” Cheryl questioned.

“More than okay,” Toni reassured her, “I’m not letting you get away again.”

"I love you,” Cheryl whispered against Toni’s lips.

“I love you too, babe,” Toni said before connecting their lips in a passionate kiss.

There was a loud whistling from above them, followed by a loud bang. They briefly pulled away from each other to watch as a bright dazzling red color exploded against the night sky, soon followed by a splash of purple and then green. Firework after firework was set off, sparkling above them and spiraling downwards. Cheryl looked on with awe and a smile plastered across her face. Toni, on the other hand, wasn’t paying any attention to the sky. She couldn’t peel her eyes away from the beautiful girl snuggled up into her side.

Despite the time that had passed, she was so grateful to finally be back with the girl who was her everything. They found their way back to one another, just like her mom had said. It was a rocky path, but they traversed through it and never lost sight of their love for each other.

_I did it Mom._

Toni leaned in and planted a kiss on Cheryl’s cheek, as her favorite girl continued to watch the fireworks paint the sky.

Whatever the future held for them, they were in this together. Forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like this chapter may have been all over the place and rushed, but whatever. Hope you enjoyed it! Not sure where High Smith is located in the Riverdale universe, but let’s say it’s just a few hours away from NYU for the sake of this story and close to Riverdale. Also, I legit had I.F.L.Y. by Bazzi on repeat as I finished the ending of this story haha.
> 
> And that, my dudes, is THE END! I can’t say thank you enough to everyone who took the time to read this and stick through it the past 2 months? This is the first story (including my own stories/books) that I have ever finished in my life and it feels absolutely amazing to have completed it. I really appreciate all the kudos and comments that I have received over the time of this story and just THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
> 
> Hope to see you guys again for some other story I decide to come up with. If you ever want to chat you can find me on Tumblr at lilwasabi. Hope to have a Choni Roadtrip story out to you guys at some point. Catch you guys next time! Deuces!


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